Hundreds of protestors gathered in a bid to break army barricades that are placed by the security forces between two tensed districts in Manipur, forcing the security forces to fire tear gas and rubber bullets. Several were injured and were taken to hospital.
Imphal: Hundreds of protestors gathered in a bid to break army barricades that are placed by the security forces between two tensed districts in Manipur, forcing the security forces to fire tear gas and rubber bullets. Several were injured and were taken to hospital.
Officials said the protesters, however, remained at the scene demanding that they be allowed to go to Torbung in the district, from where they were displaced following ethnic clashes since May. The COCOMI said they had requested the government to remove the barricades at Phougakchao Ikhai by August 30.
As a precautionary measure, complete curfew has been imposed in all the five valley districts of Manipur from Tuesday evening, he said.
In fact, the women’s wing of COCOMI on Wednesday asked people from all parts of the valley’s districts to remove the army barricades at Phougakchao Ikhai in Bishnupur district, a few kilometers from Churachandpur. Let me tell you, earlier curfew was relaxed in all the districts from 5 am to 6 pm.
In a hastily called press conference, Government spokesperson and Information and Public Relations Minister Sapam Ranjan immediately called a press conference after the information about breaking the barricade came to the fore. He said the government appeals to COCOMI to withdraw its proposed plan to attack the army barricade at Phougakchao Ikhai near Torbung on September 6. At the same time, he also requested everyone to support the security measures taken by the government.
The movement of persons related to essential services like health, electricity, PHED, petrol pump, school/college, municipality, media, functioning of courts and flight passengers will be exempted from curfew, officials said.
COCOMI’s media coordinator Somendro Thokchom said the committee had earlier urged the government and relevant authorities to remove the barricade by August 30. Urging the people to break the barricades, Thokchom said that if anything untoward happens, the state government should take full responsibility.
Locals said they were not able to go to their homes in Torbung because of the barricade at Phougachao Ikhai. In fact, when the violence broke out, people left Torbung and came to live elsewhere.
