Shutdown affects normal life in Naga inhabitated areas of Manipur

Imphal, Jul 17 (PTI) Normal life in the Naga inhabited areas of Manipur was affected on Monday during a 12-hour shutdown by the United Naga Council (UNC) to protest the murder of a woman.

Markets and local shops remain closed, vehicles kept off the roads and attendance in government offices was thin.

The woman in her mid-50s was shot in her face at Keibi in Imphal East district on Saturday. The gunmen also disfigured her face before fleeing, officials said. Police have so far arrested nine persons including five women in this connection.

A mob had also torched the residence of one of the accused on Sunday.

UNC, the apex body of Nagas in Manipur, had termed the killing as a “barbaric act” and demanded a judicial probe into the killing and the immediate arrest of all the accused.

Naga areas comprising mainly the hill districts of Noney, Tamenglong, Senapati, Chandel, Ukhrul, Kamjong and parts of Tengnoupal district have not witnessed any curfew ever since violence broke out on May 3.

More than 150 people have been killed so far and several thousand injured since ethnic clashes broke out between Meitei and Kuki communities in the northeastern state.

Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur’s population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley, while tribals, including Nagas and Kukis, constitute 40 per cent and reside mostly in the hill districts.