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Fresh gunfight claims 9 lives, keeps Manipur on edge
Clashes between the majority Meitei community and the tribal Kuki community first erupted on May 3 and has since claimed 115 lives
Nine people were gunned down and another 10 injured in Manipur’s Imphal East district when a group of unidentified men stormed a village and opened fire, authorities said on Wednesday, dealing a fresh blow to the government’s floundering efforts at restoring peace in the violence-torn state.
Manipur police officers said that between 10pm and 10.30pm on Tuesday, a group of armed men walked into Agjiang village on the border between Imphal East and Kangpokpi district and started shooting.
“There was firing in the village around 10-10.30pm and nine people were killed, and 10 others injured. All injured have been admitted to hospital where the condition of one is stated to be critical,” said K Shivakanta Singh, superintendent of police, Imphal East.
Clashes between the majority Meitei community and the tribal Kuki community first erupted on May 3 and has since claimed 115 lives. Tuesday night’s incident marked the highest number of casualties in a single day since violence first broke out six weeks ago, underlining the challenge of restoring peace in a state where ethnic divisions run deep.
The renewed violence is yet another reminder that despite some easing of tensions, anger and distrust continued to simmer and drive wedges between various communities in the northeastern state.
The government, therefore, must try to get a handle on the law-and-order situation, ensure that security forces calm tensions while initiating confidence-building measures to bridge the trust deficit between groups.
Separately, unidentified miscreants burnt down the official residence of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA and cabinet minister Nemcha Kipgen in Imphal West on Wednesday evening. Kipgen, who represents the Kangpokpi constituency, is among the 10 Kuki MLAs who have sought a separate administration for Chin-Kuki-Zomi-Hmar communities in the state. Kipgen was not in Imphal at the time of the incident, said officials aware of the matter.
There have been several attacks on MLAs and ministers and their residences in the state ever since violence began in the state.
Singh said that the security of the area where the violence occurred was under the Assam Rifles, but added that the situation was now under control.
The bodies of the deceased were shifted to the mortuary at the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences in Imphal. There was no official response from Assam Rifles. But Indian Army officials confirmed that Assam Rifles personnel had been deployed in the area for maintaining security and they had engaged in the gunfight with the armed miscreants.
Indian Army officers on the condition of anonymity said that there was initially a gunfight between members of two communities, forcing local residents to flee the area. Security forces reached the spot and engaged the miscreants Tuesday evening, following which the deaths and injuries took place, added the officers.
No other details were provided by army officials or the state police.
Immediately after the incident, the district administrations of Imphal East and West extended curfew hours, curtailing the relaxation time to just four hours from 13 hours.
Clashes between the Kukis and Meiteis first erupted on May 3 during a protest against a court-ordered tweak to the state’s reservation matrix, granting Scheduled Tribe (ST) status to the latter.
Violence quickly engulfed the state where ethnic fault lines run deep, displacing tens of thousands of people who fled burning homes and neighbourhoods into jungles, often across state borders. The authorities clamped a curfew and suspended internet, pumping in additional security forces to force a break in the spiraling clashes. Internet is still not back in the state.
Union home minister Amit Shah visited the state for four days between May 31 and June 3. The Central Bureau of Investigation is looking into five specific cases of violence and a sixth case of conspiracy behind the cases. The government has also announced a peace committee headed by governor Anasuiya Uikey but prominent groups from both sides of the divide have distanced themselves from the process.
The first wave of violence was seen between May 3 and 6, when a wave of attacks and arson forced people to flee their homes and prompted the government to fly in thousands of security personnel. But despite some easing of tensions, sporadic violence has continued, with 115 people dead, 310 injured, and over 35,000 displaced from their homes.
The Congress lashed out at the ruling BJP over the continued violence and said that the “double engine” BJP government- a reference to the same party being in power in the state and at the Centre- had failed to restore peace
“Why hasn’t the Prime Minister not called an all-party meeting to deliberate political solutions? It is high time the Modi government take responsibility for their crimes perpetrated on the people of Manipur and becomes accountable,” Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said. The BJP in the state or Centre did not make any comments.
