National Desk, 23 May: Fresh violence erupted in Manipur on Monday after miscreants torched several houses in an area under Manipur’s Imphal West district.
Chief Minister N Biren Singh said a former MLA along with two others have already been arrested.
The state had first witnessed violence on May 3. The reason for this violence was that the All Tribal Students Union of Manipur participated in a protest march organized by thousands of people opposing the demand to include the majority Meitei community in the ST category.
Among the protesters were kukis from one of the largest tribal communities in Manipur. They had disputes with the state government and the community in particular claims that the chief minister harbours Meitei’s “majoritarian” sentiments. At least 73 people have been killed and more than 35,000 have been rendered homeless in the clashes.
The conflict slowly returned normal life to Manipur. Meanwhile, at around 2 pm on Monday, violence erupted again in new Secon Bazar area of Imphal West district. In particular, the area is inhabited by the Kukis, Meitei and other communities.
Meanwhile, a group of youth led by a former MLA carrying firearms allegedly threatened the traders to shut shop soon after the evening curfew was relaxed in the morning. After this, the chief minister of the state, N Biren Singh was informed by the police that the police have arrested the former MLA. Security has also been tightened in the area as well as at various sensitive places to control the situation.