Union Home Minister Amit Shah arrived in Manipur on Monday night to try to restore peace by finding a solution between the warring communities. He chaired a meeting with Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh and state ministers, senior leaders and officials here to assess the situation and plan further steps to restore normalcy in the region.
Shah, who left in a special flight from a tense but peaceful Imphal, is expected to hold several rounds of meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday to assess the situation and plan steps to restore normalcy, sources said.
On the first day of his four-day-long tour of the state, Shah held a meeting in the presence of other concerned officials, including Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla and Intelligence Bureau chief Tapan Deka. State as well as the Center.
80 died within 26 days
Manipur, which has been wracked by ethnic strife for nearly a month, witnessed a sudden spurt in clashes and firing between militants and security forces on Sunday, after several weeks of a relative lull.
The death toll in the clashes since the ethnic riots began on May 3 has risen to 80, with officials saying three people died on Monday and two died in firing by militants on Sunday.
An official said army and paramilitary personnel are conducting search operations in Imphal Valley and adjoining districts. He said the army’s operation was aimed at confiscating illegal stock of arms.
The Indian Army and paramilitary forces have gunned down at least 25 miscreants with arms, ammunition and grenades in ethnic-conflict-torn Manipur, officials said on Monday. A spokesman for the defense forces said several persons along with weapons were detained following fresh incidents of firing and clashes in and around Imphal Valley on Sunday. “The prompt action of the Army averted loss of precious lives and several incidents of arson,” the statement said.
What does the Ministry of Defense say
The Defense PRO also said that violent clashes broke out in Sugnu and Serau villages of Kakching district on Sunday, in which the army had to intervene to rescue the affected people.
“Villagers from both communities were trapped in the pocket guarded by the security forces. In a massive evacuation operation organized by the Army and the Assam Rifles in coordination with the police, state administration and civil society organisations, around 2000 Meitei villagers were evacuated from Serau to Pangaltabi for relief. was evacuated from the camp,” he said.
The officer said aerial surveillance cover was provided by UAVs, Mine Protected Vehicles and Area Domination Patrol were placed on the ground to ensure safe and incident-free evacuation.
“Similarly, around 328 Kuki villagers were safely evacuated from Sugnu to Sajik Tampak,” he added.
Earlier on Sunday, Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh had said that around 40 armed terrorists were involved in torching houses and firing on civilians since launching an operation to bring peace in the caste-ridden northeastern state.
The caste clashes that have claimed over 75 lives first broke out in Manipur when a ‘tribal solidarity march’ was held in the hill districts on May 3, protesting the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status. Was.
The violence was preceded by tension over the eviction of Kuki villagers from reserved forest land, which led to several smaller agitations.
Meites constitute about 53 per cent of Manipur’s population and mostly live in the Imphal Valley. The tribal Nagas and Kukis constitute 40 per cent of the population and reside in the hill districts. About 140 columns of the Indian Army and the Assam Rifles, comprising over 10,000 personnel, apart from other paramilitary forces, were deployed to bring back normalcy in the northeastern state.
(with inputs from agencies)