3 min readAgartalaDec 20, 2023 02:07 AM IST
First published on: Dec 19, 2023 at 08:33 PM IST
The Manipur government on Tuesday imposed restrictions in Churachandpur district for the next two months under Code of Criminal Procedure section 144 after tensions rose following clashes between two groups. Ethnic violence has claimed 175 lives in the state since May.
The restrictions came after clashes erupted a day before the mass burial of 87 victims proposed by the Indigenous Tribal Leader’s Forum.
In a notification, District Magistrate Dharun Kumar S said that reports were received from the superintendent of police about clashes between two groups of individuals and sporadic violence in some places, especially in Thingkangphai village, on Monday.
“It has been reported that there are still chances of breach of peace due to confrontation between the two groups of people which may result into open clash with communal tone and the situation is still tense,” the district magistrate said, adding that the law and enforcing agencies had made efforts to maintain peace and tranquillity in the affected areas.
He then declared prohibitory orders for two months in the district, till February 18, 2024. The order prohibited the assembly of five or more people and carrying of arms, sticks, swords, chemicals or any other lethal weapons.
The fresh violence erupted at a time when the CBI is in the state reviewing the investigations.
Shutdown warning over burial site name
Eimi Youths, which identifies itself as an organisation for “justice in the midst of current impasse”, said in a press release, “We, members of Eimi Youths, are shocked to find that the tribal martyrs’ burial site will be named Kuki-Zomi-Mizo-Hmar, as proposed by the Joint Philanthropic Organisation.”
The organisation said it “fully endorsed” the addition of three identities in the nomenclature – Kukio, Zomi and Mizo. However, no particular tribe should be highlighted along with the other three tribes, it said.
“It is our fervent appeal to rethink the proposed name of the burial site, failing which a total shutdown will be imposed by all youths who wish to oppose the inclusion of a particular tribe in the proposed burial site,” the release said.
Meiteis, who are a significant community in the state, form around 53 per cent of the population while Nagas and Kukis constitute around 40 per cent.
On December 14, the victims’ bodies that had been languishing in morgues in Imphal for the past eight months were airlifted to respective hill districts in compliance with Supreme Court directions to ensure dignified burials. The court directions came six months after the clashes started.
A bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Mishra issued the directions on the basis of a report submitted by the Justice Gita Mittal committee, which was formed by the court on August 7 to oversee the rehabilitation of the victims of the violence.
The committee said in its report that 175 bodies were lying without burials and that 169 of them were identified, but 88 bodies were still unclaimed.
The government has recognised nine sites for cremations or burials since then but has faced resistance from the kin of the victims.
The violence started after a Tribal Solidarity March was held in the hill districts in protest against a demand to extend Scheduled Tribe status to the Meitei community.
The restrictions came after clashes erupted a day before the mass burial of 87 victims proposed by the Indigenous Tribal Leader's Forum. ( AP File Photo)
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