According to officials, security was enhanced in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district after the SP was injured in a mob attack for failing to “remove” the central armed forces as per the demands of Kuki groups on Saturday.
On Friday evening, a throng of individuals attacked the office of Superintendent of Police M Prabhakar, hurling stones and other “projectiles” in an effort to express their dissatisfaction with the ongoing deployment of central forces, particularly the BSF and the CRPF, in the Saibol village.
District police vehicles that were stored within the SP’s office compound were vandalised. According to officials, Prabhakar sustained an injury to his cranium as a result of being struck by a projectile.
According to a senior officer in Imphal, a substantial number of security forces have been stationed in the vicinity.
“Situation is now under control and being closely monitored,” according to him.
The police stated in a statement that the protestors used petrol grenades in addition to stones to attack the SP office.
“Security forces retaliated against the mob and resorted to the use of adequate force to disperse the mob and the situation was brought under control,” according to the report.
The SP appears to be “fine now and presently leading the joint security forces in tackling the situation” , according to the document.
Officials also reported that a few demonstrators who sustained injuries during the clashes were admitted to the hospital.
Kuki organisations have been protesting against central forces since December 31, when women from the community were purportedly baton-charged for obstructing their passage.
According to local residents, the security forces in Saibol village in Twiching, which is situated in the “buffer zone” between the Kuki-held Hills and the Meitei-dominated Imphal Valley, inflicted injuries on numerous individuals.
They stated that the local women had convened to speak out against the “forceful occupation” of community shelters by security personnel.
The security forces conducted the operation in the village and its peripheral areas as a result of gunfights between armed groups, which resulted in the injuries of four individuals, including a police personnel.
The Critical Transportation Route of National Highway 2 was blocked by the Kangpokpi-based Committee on Tribal Unity (COTU) in protest of the security forces’ action on December 31, which disrupted the passage of goods to the Imphal Valley, the residence of the Meiteis.
On Friday, the security forces retrieved a substantial quantity of ammunition and firearms from the Loibol Khunou region of the district.
According to the police, the items recovered included a modified 7.62 mm sniper rifle, an improvised long-range mortar, a 12 bore gun, an SBBL gun, three 9mm pistols with magazines, 10 live rounds of ammunition, three hand grenades, three picket grenades, two tear smoke grenades, and a wireless set.
Since May 2023, ethnic violence between the Meitei and Kuki communities has resulted in the deaths of over 250 individuals and the displacement of thousands.
