The shutdown was called by Kuki-Zo groups, including the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) and Kuki Students Organisation (KSO), in protest against Security Advisor Kuldiep Singh's statement about militants entering the state from outside.
All the 12 cabin crew members, including two pilots, on board the ill-fated London-bound Air India flight were killed in the Ahmedabad air crash on Thursday.
Autopsy reports of the victims of the Jiribam killings in Manipur have revealed brutal injuries, including multiple bullet wounds, severe trauma, and missing body parts. The reports, released on Wednesday, detail the horrific injuries suffered by the victims, including a 10-month-old infant, who had both eyeballs missing and a bullet injury to the knee. The killings, which took place in November, are part of the ongoing ethnic violence between Meiteis and Kuki-Zo groups in Manipur.
Two years after ethnic violence erupted in Manipur, thousands of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) continue to live in overcrowded camps, struggling to rebuild their lives and facing an uncertain future. Despite the sacking of the Chief Minister and the imposition of President's rule, peace remains a distant hope. While hill-based Kukis demand a separate administration, Meiteis seek implementation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and deportation of those they consider illegal immigrants. The IDPs, grappling with severe psychological distress, feel forgotten by the government and are forced to depend on the mercy of others for basic needs.
The protesters torched tyres and old furniture in the middle of the road in Kwakeithel and Uripok, demanding the release of the leader. The situation remained tense on Sunday morning.
Manipur Chief Minister Nongthombam Biren Singh is facing renewed scrutiny over his handling of the ethnic violence that erupted in the state in May 2023. Leaked audio tapes allegedly featuring Singh, in which he is purportedly heard discussing how the violence was instigated with his approval, have sparked fresh controversy. The Kuki Organisation for Human Rights Trust (KOHUR) has demanded a court-monitored investigation into the authenticity of the tapes, leading to a Supreme Court ruling ordering the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) to verify the tapes' authenticity and submit a report. Singh's tenure has been marked by controversies, including allegations of instigating conflict and questions regarding his governance. Despite a public apology in December 2023 for the violence, the leaked audio tapes have further intensified criticism of his leadership.
'We are not secessionists, we want to coexist with our countrymen but not on the terms that will strip us off our dignity and a right to peaceful existence.'
A Bharatiya Janata Party delegation on Tuesday called on Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla at the Raj Bhavan in Imphal amid a leadership crisis following the resignation of N Biren Singh as the chief minister of the ethnic violence-hit state two days ago.
The Meitei group Arambai Tenggol surrendered 246 firearms to security forces in Manipur, bringing the total number of weapons surrendered to 307. The surrender follows a deadline set by Governor Ajay Bhalla for the return of illegal weapons. Arambai Tenggol's decision was influenced by assurances from the governor, including the eradication of opium poppy cultivation, implementation of border fencing, and a general amnesty for members of the group. Officials believe the surrender will contribute to restoring peace in the state, which has been rocked by ethnic violence for nearly two years. The police have urged others in possession of illegal firearms to surrender them before the deadline. Former Chief Minister N Biren Singh welcomed the surrender, calling it a "big step towards peace."
The autopsy reports of three of the six persons killed in Manipur's Jiribam district by suspected Kuki militants revealed multiple bullet injuries and lacerations on various parts of their bodies, officials said on Sunday.
Fresh clashes broke out between people belonging to Zomi and Hmar tribes in Manipur's Churachandpur district, hours after a peace settlement was reached between the apex bodies of the two communities. The Zomi Students' Federation imposed a shutdown in the district after a group of men tried to take down a flag of a Zomi militant outfit. Several persons were injured in the clashes. Meanwhile, MLAs and tribal organisations appealed for peace, urging the administration to take necessary measures to restore law and order.
The AFSPA, often criticised as a draconian law, gives armed forces operating in disturbed areas sweeping powers to search, arrest and open fire if they deem it necessary.
The Indian government has sent an additional 50 CAPF companies, comprising over 5,000 personnel, to Manipur to address the challenging security and law and order situation in the northeastern state. This comes after the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) deployed 20 additional CAPF companies to the state following violence in Jiribam district. The deployment brings the total number of CAPF companies in Manipur to 218. Union Home Minister Amit Shah will also meet to review the security situation in Manipur and strategize to handle the volatile situation in the state.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has registered three cases related to recent violence in Manipur, taking over investigations from Manipur Police. These cases include the murder of a woman, an attack on a CRPF post, and the burning of houses in Jiribam. The situation in Manipur remains volatile with protests continuing following the recovery of bodies of women and children. Violence has also spread to Jiribam, previously untouched by clashes, after a farmer's body was found in June.
The agreement was reached between the warring sides at a meeting held at a CRPF facility in adjoining Assam's Cachar on Thursday. The meeting was moderated by Jiribam district administration, Assam Rifles and CRPF personnel, officials said.
The shootout occurred at a place between Haraothel and Kobsha villages though the police are not yet sure about how it began.
Sub-divisional police officer Chingtham Anand, a resident of Imphal's Haobam Marak locality, was killed in a sniper attack while he was on duty overseeing the cleaning of the grounds of Eastern Shine School for construction of a helipad jointly by the police and BSF, officials said.
In a statement, the ITLF said in view of a request of the home minister, the group will finalise an alternative location, in consultation with the people, for burial of bodies of ethnic violence victims belonging to the Kuki-Zo community which are lying in Imphal.
Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh has asked the army to take steps to trace a 56-year-old man who has been missing since November 25 from Kangpokpi district. Laishram Kamalbabu Singh went missing from the 57th Mountain Division campus of the army, and an FIR has been lodged with the Sekmai Police Station over his disappearance. The chief minister asked the authorities at the Leimakhong army camp to take responsibility for finding out the man. Singh also alleged a lack of transparency and sincerity among a section of security personnel in Manipur.
A fresh cycle of violence erupted in Manipur last Monday after 11 suspected militants, who allegedly attacked a police station and adjoining CRPF camp with sophisticated weapons in Manipur's Jiribam district, were killed in an exchange of fire.
The ongoing crisis in Manipur has affected several others in the country in one way or the other. Over the years Manipur has produced brilliant sports person in the country.
The meeting happened amid fresh violence in the state, in which at least five people were killed in Jiribam district on Saturday.
For the first time since the ethnic violence broke out in Manipur last year, a number of MLAs of Meitei, Kuki and Naga communities are set to hold a joint meeting in New Delhi on Tuesday under the supervision of the home ministry, officials said.
The Arambai Tenggol has been a focal point of controversy, with Kuki representatives blaming the organisation for exacerbating violence.
'In a complex situation a PM coming was not necessary'
An abandoned house in Lalpani village was torched by armed men on Friday night, they said.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah has reviewed the security situation in Manipur for the second consecutive day, directing officials to focus on restoring peace and order in the state. The situation has been volatile following protests and violence after the recovery of bodies of women and children. Shah also ordered the deployment of 5,000 paramilitary troops to assist the state government in handling the situation.
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 Kuki-Zo are aware of this rich resource in their areas and feel the Meitei push for ST status is because of this reason'.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah has cancelled his election rallies in Maharashtra and is returning to Delhi due to the volatile situation in Manipur. The home minister is likely to hold a meeting to review the situation in the northeastern state, where irate mobs have set fire to the residences of several BJP and Congress legislators. The incidents follow a series of killings and abductions by militants in the state.
The Commission of Inquiry was supposed to submit its report to the central government "as soon as possible but not later than six months from the date of its first sitting".
The Centre has reimposed the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in Manipur's six police station areas, including the violence-hit Jiribam.
Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Tuesday apologised for the ethnic conflict in the state which claimed over 250 lives and rendered thousands homeless, and appealed to all communities to forget and forgive past mistakes and live together in a peaceful and prosperous state.
The Kukis have already declared that they are not fielding any candidate in the parliamentary polls as an act of boycott.
A protester was killed in firing during a clash between security forces and a mob vandalising properties in Manipur's Jiribam district. The incident occurred late on Sunday night when agitators were protesting the killing of women and children abducted by militants. The deceased has been identified as K Athouba, who was in his twenties. The offices of the Congress and BJP, and a house belonging to Jiribam's Independent MLA were ransacked by a group of agitators. Meanwhile, an uneasy calm prevailed in Imphal Valley, where curfew remained enforced and internet services suspended after agitators vandalised and set ablaze properties belonging to several ministers and legislators.
The ITLF said Mizoram has welcomed more than 40,000 refugees from Myanmar and displaced people from Manipur, and it is still the most peaceful state in India.
Around 20 MLAs belonging to the warring Meitei and Kuki communities of Manipur met in New Delhi on Tuesday for the first time since ethnic violence broke out in the northeastern state 17 months ago, in a bid to hammer out a peaceful solution to the ongoing conflict.
"This is the minimum expectation at this time of national tragedy," she said.
Over seven months of violence severely hit businesses, schools, colleges and other institutions, besides disrupting transportation and communication networks. It also affected the agrarian sector, considered the mainstay of the state economy.
Curfew was relaxed in three Imphal Valley districts on Tuesday and the suspension on broadband internet lifted with conditions, even as Chief Minister N Biren Singh blamed the Congress for the present crisis in Manipur and NDA MLAs called for a "mass operation" against militants responsible for the killing of six women and children. Peaceful rallies were also staged across the state, with hundreds taking to the streets with empty coffins in Churachandpur district, demanding justice for those killed in a gunfight with the security forces in Jiribam, and members of various civil society organisations bringing out a procession in Imphal West district to protest the reimposition of AFSPA in parts of the state.
