At least nine people were killed and several others were injured in a fresh bout of firing in Manipur late on Thursday, a top police official confirmed.
Police superintendent K Shivakanta Singh was quoted by Mint as saying, “The gun battle started around 10 p.m. on Tuesday and continued for a long time. We have reports of at least nine deaths and 10 injured so far.”
A report from PTI claimed that suspected militants armed with sophisticated weapons surrounded the villagers at around 1 am and resorted to firing in the Khamenlok area along the borders of the Meitei-dominated Imphal East district and tribal-majority Kangpokpi district.
Meanwhile, the number of people injured in the incident remains inconclusive with different media reports making different claims on that front. Those injured were immediately rushed to Imphal hospital.
Earlier on Monday, nine people were injured in a gunfight between militants and village volunteers in the same region.
The district authorities in Imphal East and Imphal West have made the decision to reduce the curfew relaxation hours in light of the prevailing circumstances. The curfew had been relaxed from 5 am to 6 pm, but it has now been shortened to 5 am to 9 pm.
As of now, curfew is enforced in 11 out of 16 districts of Manipur and internet services remain suspended in the entire state.
The recent ethnic violence between the Meitei and Kuki communities in Manipur has led to a significant loss of lives and injuries. Official data hints at 100 deaths and 310 injuries, while unofficially several hundreds have been killed. Army and paramilitary forces had to be deployed to restore normalcy, however, sporadic incidents of violence have been reported from time to time.
The violent clashes broke out on May 3 after a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ organized in the hill districts against the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.
It may be noted that Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of the population of Manipur and are mostly based in the Imphal Valley. On the other hand, tribal Nagas and Kukis make up another 40 per cent of the population who reside mostly in the hill districts.
