Amidst escalating unrest and tension in Manipur, Director General of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Anish Dayal Singh, visited the state on Sunday. This visit happened at a critical time when, on November 16, a mob of protestors stormed the residences of several legislators and ministers in the Imphal Valley, even attempting to assault the residence of Chief Minister N. Biren Singh.
The Manipur police have detained 23 individuals accused of vandalism and arson on properties, marking a disturbing spike in local unrest. To curb the dissemination of fake news in Imphal Valley, internet and mobile data services have been suspended and a curfew imposed temporarily until further notifications. These measures were taken in response to the growing violence where attempts to disperse the angry crowds targeting public representatives’ homes resulted in eight people getting injured.
Security Forces Deployed on a Large Scale in Manipur
In a recent update shared by the Manipur Police on social media, it was revealed that the army, CRPF, and Assam Rifles have been heavily deployed to ensure law and order. Notably, on November 11, armed insurgents attacked the Borobraka Police Station in Manipur's Jiribam district. The CRPF operates a camp in this police station, which is located near a relief camp.
In retaliation, the CRPF neutralized 11 Kuki insurgents. As the insurgents retreated following a skirmish with security forces, they abducted six individuals from the Borobraka Relief Camp. On November 15, the bodies of a woman and two children were found near the confluence of Jiri and Barak rivers on the Manipur-Assam border, suspected to be among the six missing individuals from Jiribam district. Finding these three bodies triggered protests by the Meitei community in Imphal Valley, who gave the government a 24-hour ultimatum to capture the insurgents responsible for the abduction and killings.
Another Body Found in Barak River
On Sunday morning, the body of a 61-year-old woman, one of the six abducted from Jiribam by armed insurgents on November 11, was discovered floating in the Barak River in Assam's Cachar district, adjacent to Jiribam's boundary. Consequently, tensions in Imphal Valley have intensified further. According to a report by the PTI news agency, following the ongoing violent protests and deteriorating security situation in Imphal Valley, Union Home Minister Amit Shah canceled his scheduled election rallies in Maharashtra for Sunday and returned to Delhi.
Read more about the violence that has rocked the nation...
Six members of a single family - three women and three children - vanished from the Borobraka area of Jiribam during the turmoil. All six belong to the Meitei community and resided in a relief camp set up at Borobraka Police Station since violent unrest erupted in the area in June. The Meitei group alleges that armed Hmar individuals, presumed to be insurgents, were responsible for their abduction. Earlier this week, the bodies of two elderly Meitei men who resided in the Borobraka relief camp were discovered in the area.
