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Deadly arms in Manipur loot; recoveries after Shah appeal
Mobs in Manipur, India stole deadly weapons, including high-grade ammunition, AK-47s, sniper rifles and mortar shells from police stations and armouries during the violence that erupted on May 3. An official assessment by the state police headquarters revealed that at least 500,000 bullets, including mortars, and 3,500 guns were stolen. Home minister Amit Shah appealed to residents to surrender their weapons to the security forces and administration. So far, 749 weapons have been recovered. The violence erupted during a protest against a court-ordered tweak to the state?s reservation matrix and has led to nearly 40,000 people being displaced.
Mobs stole deadly weapons including high-grade ammunition, AK-47s, sniper rifles and mortar shells in bulk from various armouries and police stations during the violence that rocked Manipur over the past month, an official assessment by the state police headquarters has revealed, even as local residents started returning their arms a day after Union home minister Amit Shah issued an appeal.
An official in the Manipur government said that the assessment showed that at least 500,000 bullets, including mortars, and 3,500 guns were stolen since violence first broke out on May 3. The mobs, this official added, took many two inch and 51-inch mortars along with over 100 sophisticated sniper rifles.
“500,000 ammunition is a big number. The priority is to recover the ammunition. These could be used against the security forces in case of shoot outs,” said the official cited above, highlighting that the theft of such a large quantity of ammunition in a border state, where there are several militant groups, is alarming.
Shah’s appeal came on the last leg of his four-day visit to Manipur on Thursday, when he urged everyone to surrender their weapons to the security forces and administration. He also warned that a search-and-combing operation would be carried out in the state soon and anyone found to possess any weapon would be prosecuted.
Shortly after his speech, people began to come forward to return their weapons in the strife-torn state. Until noon on Friday, the state police had recovered 144 guns, said police officials aware of the matter, bringing the total number of recoveries to 749.
The surrendered weapons included 36 self-loading rifles, 18 carbines, four AKs and 34 INSAS rifles, four light machine guns, eight pistols, five M16 rifles, four smoke gun/tear gas, one sten gun and 10 grenade launcher, said the police officials cited above.
People aware of development said after Shah’s visit, the situation in Manipur was largely peaceful in most districts with only sporadic incidents of firing at or torching of empty houses by miscreants as agencies made a coordinated effort to tamp down tensions.
Manipur has been roiled by ethnic violence since May 3, with the bulk of the clashes between the Meitei community, which constitutes the majority of the state’s population and lives largely in Imphal, and the Kukis, who comprise 16% of the state and live largely in the hill districts. At least 98 people have died and nearly 40,000 displaced. The clashes erupted during a protest against a court-ordered tweak to the state’s reservation matrix, granting scheduled tribe (ST) status to the Meitei community. Violence quickly engulfed the state, displacing tens of thousands of people who fled burning homes and neighbourhoods into jungles, often across state borders.
The theft of weapons from police stations and armouries has been a cause for concerns since the first reports of violence. The official cited above said most of the stolen high-grade ammunition and weapons were from the armoury of the Manipur police training centre in Imphal.
Police teams across districts approached community leaders and heads of villages to convince people to return the weapons. The combing operations announced by Shah have not begun yet, said a senior officer monitoring the recoveries.
“All those who looted the armoury are not militants. Most of them are villagers, who used the opportunity and fled with the weapons so we are giving them time. They should come forward and return the weapons. Once we start the combing operation, and recover the hidden weapons, we will press for strict action. This could include writing to the state government to blacklist them in the state different government’s scheme. The weapons and ammunition should not fall into wrong hands,” said a senior police officer, aware of the probe.
The home minister arrived in Manipur on Monday night to quell the violence, and held talks with chief minister N Biren Singh, senior officers, and governor Anasuiya Uikey. On Tuesday, he reviewed the security situation, held an all-party meeting and met delegations from Meitei and Kuki communities. On Wednesday, Shah visited the Kuki-dominated town of Moreh on the border with Myanmar and Kangpokpi district. He also went to relief camps in Kangpokpi and Imphal, and later held a security review meeting in the state capital.
On Thursday, he announced a judicial commission headed by a retired high court chief justice to probe the violence and said the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) will look into six cases connected to the clashes. He also announced the formation of an inter-agency command for better coordination, a peace committee to be headed by Uikey, promised to improve connectivity, and assured an impartial investigation into the ethnic clashes that have pit the Meiteis against the Kukis.
