Manipur on edge: Protesters defy curfew, lock government offices; one killed in Jiribam

CENTRE TO SEND SO MORE CAPF COMPANIES

- NARESH BISWANI

Manipur continues to face a precarious security situation and a fragile law and order environment. On Monday, defying curfew orders, a group of Meitei protesters marched through the streets and locked several government offices in Imphal West district, voicing their anger over recent killings in Iiribam.

The unrest intensified after a fatal incident on Sunday night in Babupara, Jiribam district. A clash between security forces and a mob resulted in the death of a young protester, identified as K. Athouba, aged 21. It is unclear who fired the bullet that killed Athouba, but protesters claim police commandos fired weapons to disperse the mob, and that Athouba was killed in that firing.

Meanwhile, sources reported that post-mortem examinations of five out of six missing individuals from Jiri-bam district were completed at a state-run hospital in Silchar, Assam. Additionally, the decomposed body of a woman was discovered floating in the Barak River in Cachar district.

The six missing persons were identified as Yumrembam Rani Devi (60), Telem Thoibi Devi (31) and her daughter Telem Thajamanbi Devi (8), Laishram Heithoibi Devi (25) and her two children Laishram Chingkheinganba Singh (two-and-a-half-years old) and Laishram Lamnganba Singh (1O months).