Imphal, Nov 14: Manipur Chief Minister Y Khemchand Singh on Saturday chaired a high-level security review meeting to assess the law and order situation in the state after fresh violence claimed five more lives, a statement said.
A woman was killed at Taphou Kuki village in Kangpokpi district, and four people were shot dead at New Heaven in Ukhrul district on Friday, officials said.
It was decided in the meeting that combing operations would continue to apprehend those involved in various crimes, the statement said.
The meeting also directed forces to strengthen security in their respective areas of deployment and deliberated on measures to enhance security in vulnerable areas of the state.
The meeting was attended by Home Minister Govindas Konthoujam, Chief Secretary Rajeev Singh Thakur, DGP Mukesh Singh, senior officers of the Assam Rifles, CRPF and BSF, and other central agencies.
Meanwhile, Naga People’s Front (NPF) MLA Leishiyo Keishing demanded stringent action against those involved in the killing of four civilians in Ukhrul.
Keishing made the remarks during a visit to the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences (JNIMS) in Imphal, where the bodies of the four victims were brought for post-mortem examination.
He appealed to civil society organisations, village authorities and youth leaders to initiate dialogue and restore peace, cautioning that retaliatory violence would only result in further loss of innocent lives.
Grief-stricken family members gathered at the JNIMS mortuary complex to pay floral tributes to the deceased. A large number of people also took to the streets to pay their respects to the four deceased, who belonged to the Tangkhul Naga community.
The Tangkhul Naga Long (TNL), the apex body of the community, issued a three-day ultimatum to the government, demanding that “Kuki militants” be driven out of Naga-inhabited areas.
The TNL also demanded the immediate withdrawal of all central security forces deployed in the area and transfer of the case to the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
It warned that failure to meet its demands within three days would compel the public to launch an indefinite agitation until justice was delivered. (PTI)
