Police in Manipur on Thursday picked up two women who were on fast unto death stir denouncing Manipur government’s alleged mishandling of the prevailing crisis and also calling for unity among the CSOs.
Soon after the two women were picked by a team of Singjamei police of Imphal West district, two other women B Malaya and S Thoibi commenced the same fast unto death stir at the same place at a waiting shed in Singjamei.
The women launched the fast unto death stir from Wednesday under the aegis of Thawai Meerel, a body based in Singjamei area.
The two members– Nepram Ganga Leima and Chongtham Pramo Devi began the fast-unto-death protest at the waiting shed after nine days of relay hunger strike by the same group.
The body launched an intense stir denouncing the government’s apathy towards the people and the failed Assembly session and also called for unity among the CSOs to bring an end to the prevailing crisis in the state. The first two women were picked up today, around 7.30 am while the other two women began the stir today, around 9.30 am, local reports said.
While commencing the stir, the two women told reporters that even if they were picked up by the police like the other two women picked up on Thursday, the womenfolk of the area will continue the stir until peace is restored in the state.
They alleged that even after nearly three months since the violence broke out in the state on May 3 last, the state government has failed to take up a concrete step to end the crisis.
The government’s apathy toward the plights of the people has led to the loss of more than 160 lives and wounding hundreds besides rendering thousands homeless after their houses were torched, they said.
Earlier while commencing the fast unto death on Wednesday, co-convener of Thawai Meerel group Paonam Sanahanbi emphasized on the need of hours is unity among the CSOs and pointed fingers at the government for its negligence and mishandling of the present situation. She had called upon the CSOs to come together and raise the voice of the people as one.
She lamented that if the government had acted responsibility, people would not have come out on the streets and stage protests. Failure on the part of the government to protect lives and properties led to the people’s uprising against the government, she had alleged.
