Imphal: Curfew imposed after residences of 2 ministers stormed

In Manipur, hundreds of people protested in different parts of Imphal valley on Saturday after three bodies suspected to be of six persons missing were found from Jiribam district. The protesters mostly women blocked the main roads in Kwakeithel area in Imphal West district, Sagolband Tera in Imphal West district by burning tyres to prevent vehicular movement, police said. At Khwairamband market, the main market of Manipur, women vendors staged a protest rally against the killing even as huge security forces were deployed in Imphal, the police said.Residents also took to the streets in Ningthoukhong in Bishnupur district and Lamlong in Imphal East district to stage protests against the killing. In response to the unrest, the state government declared a holiday for schools and colleges on Saturday. Protesters stormed the residences of two ministers and three MLAs in Imphal, demanding justice for the murder of three persons in Jiribam district, police said.The mob attacks on legislators' houses prompted the Imphal West administration to impose prohibitory orders in the district for an indefinite period.

#WATCH | Imphal, Manipur: Women vendors protest as violence and tension prevails in the state after the kidnapping of 6 individuals and the bodies of 3 were found (not clear yet if they belong to the abductees) pic.twitter.com/91HCcaat8J

— ANI (@ANI) November 16, 2024

Three bodies of a woman and two children suspected to be of six persons missing from Jiribam district were found near the confluence of Jiri river and Barak river along Manipur-Assam border on Friday night, officials said on Saturday.Three women and three children who lived in a relief camp have been missing since a gunfight between security forces and militants in Jiribam district on Monday, with Metei organisations alleging that they were kidnapped by the retreating militants. Police said a search was underway for them.Meanwhile, a curfew was imposed in Imphal West and Imphal East in violence-hit Manipur and internet services were suspended in seven districts as fresh protests erupted in the Valley districts. Internet was suspended in Imphal West, Imphal East, Bishnupur, Thoubal, Kakching, Kangpokpi and Churachandpur districts for two days given the current situation in the northeastern state. More than 200 people have been killed and thousands rendered homeless in ethnic clashes between Imphal Valley-based Meiteis and adjoining hills-based Kuki-Zo groups since May last year.