1 Killed As Mob Tries To Loot Weapons From Security Camp In Manipur

Guwahati:

A mob allegedly tried to loot weapons from a camp of the Indian Reserved Battalion (IRB) in Manipur’s Thoubal district on Tuesday, leading to a clash with the security forces in which a 27-year-old man was killed and an Assam Riles jawan shot at, sources said.

The mob tried to invade the camp of 3rd IRB batallion in the Khangabok area to loot arms and ammunition, sources said.

Soon, a clash with the forces broke out. The forces tried to bring the situation under control and used teargas shells and rubber bullets at first. But as the armed mob opened fire, the forces shot back, sources said.

The 27-year-old man died later at the Thoubal district hospital.

The situation is under control at present, sources added.

The latest incident comes just days after three “villagers volunteers” were shot dead in pre-dawn attack in Churachandpur, located around 70 km southeast of Imphal.

After several ethnic groups boycotted the governor-led Peace Committee in Manipur, the centre is holding backchannel talks with the Kuki and Meitei communities to try and achieve a semblance of normalcy in the violence-hit state.

Violence between members of Manipur’s Kuki ethnic group, who mostly live in the hills, and Meiteis, the dominant community in the lowlands, erupted on May 3 as a result of resentment over economic benefits and quotas in government jobs and education reserved for hill people.

Over 100 people have died. Both communities continue to accuse each other of atrocities. The Internet has been snapped in the state since May 3.