Manipur relaxes prohibitory orders in valley districts, Arambai Tenggol calls off shutdown
The Manipur government on Tuesday lifted prohibitory orders in Imphal West, Imphal East, Kakching, Thoubal and Bishnupur districts between 5 am and 5 pm, NDTV reported.
The separate orders issued by the district magistrates permitted movement of persons outside their homes in daytime provided no activity was carried out to 'disrupt the prevailing law and order' in the area.
The orders continued to disallow gatherings of five or more persons and banned the carrying of sticks, stone, firearms and explosive materials in public places.
A curfew was imposed on Saturday night in Bishnupur district, and orders prohibiting five or more persons from gathering were implemented in Kakching, Thoubal, Imphal East and Imphal West after a member of armed Meitei group Arambai Tenggol was arrested in Imphal West.
Internet services had also been suspended in the five districts located in the state's Meitei-dominated valley region.
Arambai Tenggol calls off shutdown
The Arambai Tenggol on Tuesday withdrew the 10-day Manipur shutdown it had called to protest the arrest of its leader Asem Kanan Singh, The Hindu reported.
The group decided to suspend the shutdown to 'lessen the inconvenience faced by the people across the valley', The Hindu quoted the group's Spokesperson Robin Mangang as saying.
A team of the National Investigation Agency and the Manipur Police had on Saturday evening arrested Singh, said to be the 'army chief' of the Arambai Tenggol, in Imphal West. Hundreds of residents took to the streets in Imphal West's Kwakithel area to try to stop the police convoy and snatch him from custody.
The police opened fire to force the mob to disperse.
On Sunday, the Central Bureau of Investigation arrested him for his alleged involvement in criminal activities related to the 2023 Manipur violence, The Hindu reported.
Protesters also burned tyres and blocked roads in parts of the state capital, including the Tiddim road and Uripok areas in Imphal West district, demanding that Singh be immediately released.
On Tuesday, Mangang added that the group will continue with democratic forms of agitation until their leader is released unconditionally.
The police on Monday said that Singh was a head constable when he was terminated from service in March for his alleged involvement in criminal activities including cross-border smuggling of arms.
Manipur has been mired in ethnic clashes between the Meiteis and Kuki-Zo-Hmar communities that have killed at least 260 persons and displaced more than 59,000 persons since May 2023. There were periodic upticks in violence in 2024.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
20 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
BJP's local units set to get new presidents
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday named local unit chiefs in Puducherry and Mizoram, and set the ball rolling for similar elections in Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, fuelling speculation that the process of picking a new national president is now on the anvil. BJP's local units set to get new presidents The term of the incumbent party chief, JP Nadda, ended in January last year, but the national executive committee in January 2024 extended his term till June 2025, in view of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. VP Ramalingam and K Beichhua were elected state unit presidents in Puducherry and Mizoram respectively on Monday. One leader each in Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh also filed their nomination for the election, as is prescribed by the party's constitution. Since, there is only one nominee in these four important states, the announcement of the next state unit chief is likely to be this week, said party leaders aware of the details. So far, new appointments have been made in 16 states, while the process is yet to begin in Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. As per the party's constitution, the national president can be elected after elections are held in 50% of the states. India has 28 states and seven Union Territories. 'The process of electing a new president will begin with the filing of nominations…the process is usually unopposed as the party picks nominees through consensus,' said a party leader. The new appointment is not only being made with an eye on the upcoming state elections in Bihar, West Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, but also with the next general election in mind, said the leader quoted above. 'The new president will be someone who is well established in the sangathan (organisation) with a hold on party issues, ideology and ability to take the allies along…' the leader said. Ramchander Rao and PVN Madhav, who filed the nominations in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh respectively, are known for their hold over organisational issues. Rao's nomination elicited a strong reaction from controversial lawmaker T Raja Singh, who resigned from the party, but senior leaders in Delhi downplayed the response and brushed aside concerns of factionalism in the state unit. 'Unfortunately, it appears that some individuals, driven by personal interests, have misled the central leadership and taken decisions by running the show from behind the curtain,' Singh in his resignation leader addressed to Telangana BJP unit chief G Kishan Reddy. Reacting to Singh's allegations, senior BJP leader and Union minister of state for home Bandi Sanjay, said, 'As a disciplined soldier of the party, he should accept the choice of the party national leadership. He cannot violate the party line.' In Maharashtra, working president and four-term MLA Ravindra Chavan is set to be elected in place of Chandrashekhar Bawankule, who is now a state minister. In Uttarakhand, the incumbent state unit chief and Rajya Sabha MP Mahendra Bhatt is set to begin a new term. 'Chavan is a four-time legislator and a long-time colleague in the party. We are happy he has filed his nomination,' Maharashtra chief minister and party leader Devendra Fadnavis said. Chavan began his political in 2007 when he was elected as a corporator in the Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation. He was later elected to the state assembly in 2009, 2014, 2019 and 2024. and was recently inducted as a cabinet minister with the PWD portfolio. In Andhra Pradesh, Madhav is set to replace Daggubati Purandeswari, who was the first woman president of the state unit and a former national general secretary. She is also the sister-in-law of chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu. The party has stuck to its social engineering formula; while Rao and Bhatt are counted among the so-called upper caste, Madhav is from the backward classes and Chavan is a Maratha.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
'Kept out' of state chief race, Raja quits BJP
Hyderabad: In a dramatic escalation of internal dissent within Telangana BJP , MLA T Raja Singh resigned Monday against N Ramchander Rao's appointment as state unit chief, and alleged he was "threatened by the party" not to file his nomination for the post. Singh, considered the party's Hindutva posterboy in the Congress-goverened state, submitted a strongly worded two-page resignation to outgoing state unit chief and Union coal minister G Kishan Reddy. "This decision (Rao's appointment) has come as a shock and disappointment, not just to me, but to lakhs of workers, leaders, and voters who have stood by BJP through high and low," Singh wrote, adding. "I may have resigned from the party, but not from the ideology. "
Indian Express
3 hours ago
- Indian Express
Meitei groups seek NRC, free movement for all at meet with MHA officials
A delegation of 19 representatives from three Manipur valley-based civil society organisations met with officials from the Union Home Ministry in Delhi Monday in continuation with previous rounds of talks with these groups. This was the first time that representatives of all three major groups – COCOMI, AMUCO and FOCS – representing Meitei interests met with MHA officials together in Delhi. The Home Ministry team the delegation met was led by the ministry's North East Advisor A K Mishra and IB Joint Director Rajesh Kamble. In a joint statement, they outlined key issues that they raised in the meeting. It stated that it 'reaffirmed its non-compromising stance on any initiative that could undermine the territorial integrity of the state,' a stance that is in opposition to the demand by Kuki-Zo groups for a 'separate administration' system for parts of the state where their community is in the majority. 'The delegation pressed for the urgent need to ensure free movement for all, emphasising that it is not only a fundamental right and a constitutional obligation of the government, but also the first essential step towards restoring peace in the state,' they said in their statement. Since the start of the conflict in May 2023, members of either conflicting community have largely not travelled in areas where the other community is in majority. The opening up of the state's highways by all communities has also been contentious with Kuki-Zo groups expressing hesitation to agree to this without discussion on their political demands. They emphasised two other long-standing demands. First, that a National Register of Citizens (NRC) be implemented in the state or a similar mechanism 'to address the issue of illegal immigration', which they have held to be the key reason for volatility in the region. The other is opposition to extension of Suspension of Operation (SoO) agreements with Kuki-Zo insurgent groups 'without a prior comprehensive and amicable understanding among all stakeholders within the state.' Last month, Kuki-Zo representatives had resolved that dialogues with the Government of India on behalf of the community would only be done by the SoO groups and talks are underway between these groups and the Union government on reviewing the ground rules of the SoO agreements. 'The MHA officials assured the delegation that the matters raised are being seriously considered and will be forwarded to the appropriate authorities for necessary action and approvals..,' the joint statement by the delegation said.
