Over 8 hurt in inter-village clash over land ownership in Manipur

Several villagers were injured in an inter-village clash over a land dispute in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district on Tuesday night, reports said on Wednesday. Two four-wheelers were also damaged in the violent clash between villagers of Kharam Pallel and Kotlein village under New Keithelmanbi police station of Kangpokpi district around 8pm, the report said.
A police source said that the dispute surfaced over the ownership of a stone mining location between the two neighbouring villages.
With tensions heightened, the two sides started pelting stones at each other around 8 pm. In the melee, around eight villagers on both sides sustained injuries after being hit by stones.
Windshields of two four-wheelers were also smashed by the clashing villagers. One of the damaged vehicles belonged to the chief of Kolien village while the other belonged to a villager of Kharam village.
Timely intervention by a strong team of police from New Keithelmanbi police station of Kangpokpi prevented possible major casualties among villagers, the report said.
The situation is under control for the time being even as tensions among the villagers were reportedly running high.
Armed police have been deployed at the inter-village border and disputed site to check re-surfacing the clash, the report added.