As violence between tribals and the majority Meitei community in Manipur spread to capital Imphal, the state government on Thursday issued a ‘shoot at sight’ order in “extreme cases”. The order signed by the Governor was issued under provisions of the criminal procedure code 1973.
It said the ‘shoot at sight’ could be resorted to when persuasion, warning and reasonable force “have been exhausted and the situation could not be controlled”. The Centre, which is monitoring the situation, has dispatched teams of the Rapid Action Force (RAF), a specialised force to handle riots, for deployment in violence-hit areas of the Northeastern state.
The Army has also kept some 14 columns on standby for deployment in case the situation flared up once again, a defence spokesperson said. He said around 9,000 people have been rescued from the violence-hit areas so far.
Meanwhile, the Indian Army has warned against fake videos doing rounds amid the escalating violence between the tribals and the majority Meitei community in Manipur.
Urging people to be careful, a tweet by the Indian Army read: “Fake videos on the security situation in Manipur including a video of an attack on Assam Rifles post being circulated by inimical elements for vested interests. Indian Army requests all to rely on content through official & verified sources only,” the Spear Corps, Indian Army said in a tweet.
The Army and Assam Rifles staged flag marches in Khuga, Tampa, Khomaujanbba areas of Churachandpur. Flag marches were also carried out in Mantripukhri, Lamphel, Koeirangi area of Imphal Valley, and Sugnu in Kakching district on Thursday.
Earlier in the day, Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke to Manipur Chief Minister N.Biren Singh and took stock of the situation. In the evening, Shah also spoke to the chief ministers of neighbouring states—Neiphiu Rio (Nagaland), Zoramthanga (Mizoram) and Himanta Biswa Sarma (Assam).
As vandalism and arson continued in several districts, the government had on Wednesday suspended Internet and broadband services for five days.
Clashes broke out on Wednesday which intensified overnight with counter-attacks being mounted by rival communities in retaliation to earlier attacks, after Naga and Kuki tribals organised a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ to protest moves to give scheduled tribe status to the majority Metei community.
