The protesters called for the restoration of peace and urged authorities to allow them to return to their homes in the Kuki-dominated areas of Moreh in Tengnoupal and the Churachandpur district.
Guwahati: At least eight displaced persons from the Meitei community and a video journalist were injured when Manipur police used tear gas shells during a protest in Imphal on Thursday afternoon. The protesters were demanding the restoration of peace in the conflict-hit state.
Sources reported that hundreds of displaced individuals, who were sheltering in a relief camp in Imphal’s Akhampat area, participated in the march. They were confronted by police as they allegedly moved towards the official residence of Chief Minister N Biren Singh.
The protesters called for peace to be restored and for them to be allowed to return to their homes in the Kuki-dominated areas of Moreh in Tengnoupal and Churachandpur district. They had fled to the Meitei-dominated Imphal after violence erupted on May 3 last year. Additionally, they demanded proper rehabilitation for the displaced individuals.
“The protesters ignored repeated police appeals to stop and not march towards the CM’s residence. They were halted in the Singjamei area,” a source said. The protesters accused the BJP government of failing to resolve the conflict, leaving them in relief camps for over a year. They intended to submit a memorandum to the Chief Minister, seeking steps to restore peace.
Since May last year, the conflict between the Kuki and Meitei communities has resulted in at least 226 deaths and displaced over 60,000 people. Those in relief camps have not been able to return home due to ongoing sporadic incidents of firing.
