Correspondent
SHILLONG, AUG 20: At least 10 protesters sustained injuries on Thursday when a protest demanding justice for murdered Naga hostages turned violent in Imphal West-Kangpokpi inter-district border.
Widow of one of the murdered hostages was among the injured protesters.
The injured widow, Wikhouliu (36) from Konshakhul is the wife of late Phenrongwi who was among the six deceased victims and currently staying at a relief camp at Makhan village.
She has been shifted at the JNIMS hospital, Imphal along with other injured persons.
They sustained injuries when the security forces including RAF personnel resorted to firing tear gas shells and mock bombs in their bid to disperse the protests holding a protest march along Imphal-Dimapur section of NH-2 at Kanglatombi area.
Hundreds of protesters from the Naga and Meitei communities gathered in the Namdilong area and along National Highway-2 near Kanglatongbi and staged the protest while pressing for swift justice for the murdered six Naga hostages.
One group staged a sit-in at Namdilong, a Liangmai (Naga) village in Imphal West district adjoining Kangpokpi district while another group marched from Kanglatongbi Bazar towards the village.
The protesters raised slogans and demanded accountability for the deaths.
The protest march turned violence after the forces blocked the protesters from carrying out the rally further.
When the protesters attempted to proceed despite strong resistance, the security forces deployed the crowd control measures.
In response to tear gas shelling and mock bombs, some among the protesters pelted stones and used slingshots toward the security forces.
Several people, including both protesters and security personnel, sustained injuries in the clash and among them 10 were rushed to a nearby healthcare centre. They were later shifted to JNIMS hospital, Imphal advanced medical treatment. Tension remained high in the area even after the dispersal.
Naga and Meitei communities of the area have been staging various forms of protests including road blockade along NH-2 demanding accountability for the six Liangmei Naga hostages who were brutally murdered after abduction allegedly by Kuki armed groups in Kangpokpi district.
Meanwhile, many Naga and Meitei based CSOs, including Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), strongly condemned today’s security forces’ “excessive” action on the protesters.