'Why is it that no other institutions are attacked? Why are only educational institutions run by Christians attacked?'
Unidentified "rioters" opened "unprovoked" fire at village Haraothel in Kangpokpi district of Manipur on Thursday morning, leading to tension in the area even as the army quoted "unconfirmed reports" to indicate some casualties.
The shootout occurred at a place between Haraothel and Kobsha villages though the police are not yet sure about how it began.
In a separate incident, a tribal woman had lodged a complaint at Saikul police station, stating that her 21-year-old daughter and her 24-year-old friend were allegedly raped by a mob at their rented house near Konung Mamang before brutally murdering them on May 4.
Around 800 people, including children and the elderly, are living in pitiable conditions in relief shelters near Thangjing temple and Moirang Lamkhai which are being run by three organisations.
Asking Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the state government, to file an updated status report, the bench said, "It should have details like rehabilitation camps, law and order and recovery of arms."
"Dialogue is the only solution to the ongoing crisis in Manipur," Shah said.
'Who is the aggressor and who is the victim is not clear, each blames the other.'
State information and public relations minister Dr RK Ranjan said combing operations have been launched in all districts, particularly in vulnerable areas.
In fresh violence in Manipur, two houses were torched by a mob in Imphal East district after two armed miscreants forced people to shut their shops on Monday afternoon, police officials said.
Security presence which has been bolstered by flying in more army troops and rapid action force and central police forces was clearly visible at all major areas and roads.
The assault and humiliation of two women paraded naked in a Manipur village in May sparked nationwide outrage on Thursday with Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying the incident had shamed 140 crore Indians and the Supreme Court terming it 'simply unacceptable'.
'Deeply hurt by Modi's conspicuous silence for over a month-and-a-half since the outbreak of violence, people in Manipur came on the roads and crushed their radio sets to express their frustration and anger.' 'The fact that Modi's Mann Ki Baat did not have a single reference to the Manipur violence further accentuated this hurt and anger.'
No process can offer a panacea for ethnic conflict, but there are times at which a legal process could work to defuse violence, asserts Supreme Court lawyer Devvrat.
Bose, who was earlier a Lok Sabha MP, pointed out in an interview to PTI that members of all the three communities had joined Netaji's INA in 1944 and fought shoulder to shoulder in the battlefields of Bishnupur and Ukhrul districts in an advance into India.
Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Monday said that a police case has been filed on the basis of a complaint against the president and three members of the Editors Guild of India (EGI) for a report critiquing media coverage out of Manipur, and accused them of trying to "provoke clashes" in the state.
The apex court ordered adequate steps to be taken for protecting places of worship.
The ITLF alleged that thousands of weapons looted from state armouries in capital Imphal are being used in the "ethnic cleansing campaign".
The Arambai Tenggol has been a focal point of controversy, with Kuki representatives blaming the organisation for exacerbating violence.
A leading Kuki-Zo organisation in Manipur has demanded a judicial probe into the killing of 10 youths in a gunfight with the CRPF, raising questions about the paramilitary force's neutrality. The Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF) also reiterated its demand for a separate administration for the Kuki-Zo community in the state, where ethnic violence between Kuki tribals and Meiteis has claimed over 250 lives since May last year. The ITLF claimed the post-mortem reports showed the youths were shot from the back, suggesting they were not engaged in a gunfight when they were killed. The organisation further alleged that CRPF personnel stationed nearby refused to intervene during an attack on Zairawn village, where a woman was killed. The ITLF has called for a political solution to the ongoing conflict, urging the Union Home Minister to consider a separate administration for the Kuki-Zo people.
The top court also took note of the submissions about objectionable public utterances by some groups and individuals.
The Manipur government has decided to provide arms and ammunition to the people of the state to defend themselves from militants. Official sources said in Imphal on Saturday that the state cabinet, presided over by Manipur Chief Minister O Ibobi Singh, discussed the issue on Friday night at a meeting. About 300 youths at Heirok and 200 youths at Chajing, commanded by police forces, will be recruited to provide security to the people. Each youth would be provided with Rs 3,000
Security personnel have been put on alert, and additional measures taken to prevent any incident following the viral of photos of the students, a senior officer said.
Observing that it does not propose to run the administration in Manipur, the apex court said necessary verifications shall be carried out before issuing the Aadhaar cards expeditiously.
For the most battle-hardened, specialised and successful counter-insurgency army in the world, this is an unfamiliar, first-time experience of dealing with the north east's deepest complexities, observes Shekhar Gupta.
Known as 'Sentinels of the North East' and 'Friends of the Hill People', the officers, drawn from the Army, and jawans have been fighting a war of nerves since the ethnic clashes between majority Meitei and hill tribe Kukis erupted on May 3.
Three personnel, including two of major-rank and one naib subedar, have been conferred the Kirti Chakra, the ministry said.
Protests erupted in Imphal, Manipur, on Monday, as a group led by the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) locked government offices in protest of the recent killing of three women and three children in Jiribam. The Manipur government also extended the suspension of internet services for two more days, till Wednesday, in seven districts of the state. The protests come amidst a fresh wave of unrest following the disappearance of six people from a displaced persons camp in Jiribam and the subsequent discovery of multiple bodies.
The protestors pelted stones at the Singjamei police station on Tuesday night.
The Imphal Valley in Manipur, which remained peaceful for most of Friday, witnessed sporadic clashes later in the day as more security forces were rushed in from other states by road and air to calm down a state which had witnessed bloody ethnic rioting over the last 48 hours.
'Assam Rifles have prevented a large number of genocides and killings.'
The house of Manipur PWD Minister Konthoujam Govindas in Bishnupur district was vandalised on Wednesday by a group of people claiming that the government in the strife-torn state is not doing enough to protect locals from militants belonging to another community, officials said.
'Can they (the Union government) provide security to every tribal in the valley? This is impossible now.'
Business establishments remained closed on Tuesday morning and people were asked by security personnel to remain indoors through the public address system in New Chekon area of Imphal East district, where a mob torched two houses after four armed people, including a former MLA, forced people to shut their shops on Monday.
"Based on this consensus, the process of disengagement is almost complete. Our efforts will be to take the matter beyond disengagement; but for that, we will have to wait a little longer," he added.
A man who was part of the mob that paraded naked two tribal women in Kangpokpi district of Manipur and was seen dragging one of them was among four persons arrested on Thursday as the incident of May 4 drew widespread condemnation.
Officials of the Central Bureau of Investigation have been handed over two FIRs -- one filed by police at the Lamphel station and the other filed by the boy's father -- Joshua Hangsing -- at the Kangpokpi police station.
'Unfortunately, there is no movement towards peace in Manipur.'
A team of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officials, led by the agency's Special Director Ajay Bhatnagar, will reach Imphal in a special flight on Wednesday to investigate the 'kidnapping and killing' of two students who went missing in the northeastern state on July 6, sources said.
'They only bring pieces. Dialogue is the only way forward.' 'We should get people who have influence to bring the community leaders to sit across the table and talk.' 'Otherwise, our adversaries across the borders will add fuel to the fire. Let's not give them a chance.'
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