Imphal4 minutes ago
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This picture is from 28 May. When the violent mob set fire to many places in Imphal.
Violence broke out again in Manipur on Sunday. Some people set fire to 100 houses in Sero village of Kakching district. It also includes the house of Congress MLA Ranjit Singh.
Clashes have been going on in the state since May 3 between the people of the Meitei and Kuki communities. Information about the people of which community has executed the latest incident has not been received.
People were safely evacuated from homes
According to officials, some people came to Sero village on Sunday evening and started vandalizing MLA Ranjit’s house. The MLA and his family had a narrow escape. The violent mob set many houses on fire.
A senior police officer said, people were safely evacuated from the houses after the fire broke out. He was taken to the relief camp. The fire brigade later brought the fire under control.
BSF unit attacked
The mob also fired at a BSF team deployed in the rural areas of the district. The post was attacked with mortars. No jawan has been injured so far. Police suspect that the suspects used stolen weapons to attack the BSF post. Meanwhile, there were also reports of exchange of fire between the security forces and the violent mob.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah visited the Meitei relief camp in Imphal during his four-day visit to Manipur.
Home Minister appealed to surrender arms
Violence broke out in Manipur on May 3, even after a month when the violence did not stop in the state, Home Minister Amit Shah reached Manipur on May 29 on a four-day visit. On the last day of the tour (June 1), Shah told people in Manipur not to pay heed to rumours. Those possessing weapons will have to surrender before the police.
Shah had said that the search operation would start from June 2. If anyone is found with weapons, strict action will be taken. After this, the miscreants started surrendering weapons. A total of 202 weapons have been surrendered so far.
Formation of a 3-member commission to investigate the violence
The government has constituted a 3-member commission to probe the violence. It will be headed by former Gauhati High Court Chief Justice Ajay Lamba. The commission will inquire into the cause, spread, riots of violence in Manipur and submit its report within six months.
Amit Shah had also reached Moreh city near the Myanmar border and inquired about the situation from the security forces.
98 people have lost their lives so far
Violence started in Manipur on 3 May. Violent clashes broke out in Serau and Sugnu areas adjoining capital Imphal on Sunday. In this, 5 people including 1 policeman were killed, while 12 were injured. So far 98 people have lost their lives due to violence in the state, while 310 people have been injured.
Know in 4 points, the whole controversy…
1. Meitei community accounts for half the population in Manipur.
The Meitei community forms more than half of Manipur’s population of about 3.8 million. The Imphal Valley, which covers about 10% of Manipur’s area, is dominated by the Meitei community. Recently, the Manipur High Court has issued orders to the state government to consider the inclusion of the Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribes (ST).
2. Why the Meitei community is asking for reservation
The people of the Meitei community argue that they had the status of a tribe in the princely state before their merger with the Indian Union in 1949. In the last 70 years, the Meitei population has decreased from 62 percent to around 50 percent. The Meitei community is demanding reservation for its cultural identity.
3. Naga-Kuki tribe against reservation
The Naga and Kuki tribes of Manipur are opposed to giving reservation to the Meitei community. The Nagas occupy 90% of the state’s area and the Kukis form 34% of the state’s population. They say that 40 of the state’s 60 assembly seats are already in the Meitei-dominated Imphal Valley. Politically, the Meitei community is already dominant in Manipur.
The Naga and Kuki tribes fear that reservation for Meitei in the ST category will lead to division of their rights. As per the existing law, the Meitei community is not allowed to settle in the hilly areas of the state.
4. Reservation issue due to recent violence
The recent violence in Manipur can be attributed to the Meitei reservation. In August last year, Chief Minister Biren Singh’s government had ordered the eviction of the Naga and Kuki tribes living in the forest areas of Churachandpur, terming them as infiltrators. Naga-Kuki were getting angry with this. The Meiteis are Hindus, while most of the Nagas and Kukis of the ST category follow Christianity.
Also read this news related to Manipur violence…
Area domination operation begins in Manipur, 35 weapons recovered: Army, police and CRPF working together
Explain that the area domination operation has been carried out to recover the weapons looted during the violence in the state, so that peace can be restored in Manipur. An army official said that efforts are on for the safety of the local people. Weapons are being confiscated so that the miscreants cannot disturb the people. Read full news…