Manipur police arrest 7 more in connection with arson, property damage; 32 arrested so far

Imphal (Manipur) [India], November 22 (ANI): Manipur Police on Friday arrested seven more individuals in connection with arson and property damage incidents involving elected members on November 16. This brings the total number of arrests to 32.

According to Manipur police officials, the new arrests were made on November 20 and 21.

In connection with cases related to arson/damage of properties of elected members on 16.11.2024, Manipur Police arrested 07 (seven) more persons on 20.11.2024 and 21.11.2024 in addition to the 25 (twenty-five) persons arrested on earlier days”, the police officials said via a post on X.

Those arrested have been identified as Wahengbam Jyotikumar Singh (26), Khundrakpam Bikram Singh (41), Monish Nepram (31), and Aribam Mirachandra Sharma (41),.Elangbam Harison Singh alias Dada (34), Lourembam Norojit Singh alias Nonni Singh (40), Laimayum Kedarnath Sharma (37).

Further investigation is ongoing, said the Manipur Police on their social media platform X.

Police also conducted search operations and area domination by security forces in the fringe and vulnerable areas of hill and valley districts. Movement of 50 and 432 nos. of vehicles carrying essential items along NH-37 and NH-2 has been ensured. Strict security measures are taken up in all vulnerable locations and security convoy is provided in sensitive stretches in order to ensure free and safe movement of the vehicles. A total of 105 Nakas/Checkpoints were installed in different Districts of Manipur, both in the hill and the valley and no one was detained by Police in connection with violations in different districts of the State.

In related developments, Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh has responded sharply to Congress leader P Chidambaram’s criticism of his handling of the ongoing crisis in the state. Chidambaram had posted, then deleted, a message blaming the Chief Minister for the crisis, suggesting that the situation in Manipur was a result of his leadership. In response, Singh accused Chidambaram of being the “root cause” of the ongoing violence in the state.

Meanwhile, several Manipur MLAs passed a resolution on Monday outlining their demands in response to the violence. The resolution called on the central government to reconsider the imposition of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) in the state. The MLAs also demanded an operation within seven days against Kuki militants, who are accused of killing six people, including women and children, in Jiribam.

Additionally, the resolution called for the transfer of three key cases to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), including investigations into the killing of six civilians, a woman who was burnt, and a woman farmer.

The recent escalation followed the discovery of six bodies, leading the state government to suspend internet services in seven districts as a precautionary measure.