Manipur

Twenty more firearms have been surrendered by the public in four districts of ethnic strife-torn Manipur, police said on Monday. The fresh surrenders took place in Imphal East and West, Bishnupur and Jiribam districts on Sunday. Three firearms, including two 9mm pistols, were surrendered at the SDPO office at Porompat in Imphal East district, while four firearms, three grenades and other items were surrendered before the BSF in Bishnupur district, a police officer said. Firearms were also surrendered at Jiribam, Wangoi and Sekmai police stations, he said. Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla had on February 20 urged warring groups to voluntarily surrender weapons robbed from security forces and other illegally held firearms within seven days. During the seven-day period, more than 300 firearms were surrendered by the public, primarily in the valley districts. Later, he extended the deadline for the surrender of looted and illegal firearms till 4 pm on March 6 following demands by people fr

Forty-two more firearms and cartridges have been surrendered by the public in five districts of ethnic strife-torn Manipur, police said on Sunday. The firearms were surrendered in Imphal West and East, Churachandpur, Bishnupur and Tamenglong districts on Saturday, a police officer said. Five firearms, including two pistols, six grenades and over 75 cartridges were surrendered in Bishnupur district. Seventeen country-made guns, nine 'pompi' (locally made mortars), and cartridges were surrendered at Kaimai police station in Tamenglong district. At least 10 firearms and cartridges were surrendered at Yaingangpokpi, Porompat, Churachandpur and Lamsang police stations, the police officer said. During search operations at Sairemkhul in Imphal West district, an INSAS LMG with one magazine loaded with 20 rounds of ammunition, one AK-56 rifle, three SLR rifles, one SMG 9mm carbine, one .303 rifle, one DBBL gun, four grenades without detonators, one Chinese hand grenade and other articles w

The Kuki Students' Organisation and the Kuki-Zo Women's Forum Delhi and NCR staged a demonstration here on Saturday, and raised the demand for a separate Union Territory with a legislature for the Kuki areas of Manipur. Scores of members of the Kuki-Zo tribe gathered at the Jantar Mantar and raised slogans, saying they cannot go back to Manipur unless the crisis in the northeastern state has been resolved. The protesters carried placards with slogans that called Biren Singh's resignation from the chief minister's post a "smokescreen" and highlighted their demand for a separate Union Territory. The protesters blamed the former chief minister for the situation prevailing in Manipur. In a statement issued at the demonstration site, the protesters said the Kuki-Zo community has endured historical injustices. "The Kuki-Zo community has endured historical injustices and would like to reiterate the urgent need for a political solution for the community in Manipur," the statement, copies o

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday reviewed the security situation in Manipur with a focus on bringing back normalcy in the restive state and surrender of illegal and looted arms held by different groups, sources said. This was the first such a meeting held after the imposition of the President's rule in the northeastern state, which has been witnessing ethnic violence since May 2023. Over 250 people have lost their lives in the violence. "The home minister took stock of the security situation in Manipur. A detailed briefing was given on the overall law and order situation in the state," sources said. The sources added that the focus of the meeting was on bringing back to the pre-May 2023 level of normalcy and on the surrender of illegal and looted arms held by different groups. Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla, top officials of the Manipur government, Army, paramilitary forces attended the meeting. The President's rule was imposed in Manipur on February 13 after N Biren Singh ..

Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla on Friday extended the deadline for the surrender of looted and illegal arms until 4 PM on March 6 following demands by people from both hill and valley areas for additional time, an official statement said. "Upon the expiry of the seven-day deadline for the voluntary surrender of arms, there have been requests from both the valley and hill areas to extend the period. I have considered these requests and decided to extend the deadline until 4 PM on March 6," the statement read. It further assured that no punitive action would be taken against those who surrender their weapons within this period, emphasising that "this is the last opportunity for everyone concerned to contribute to peace, communal harmony, the future of our youth, and the security of our society." Bhalla had on February 20 urged warring groups to voluntarily surrender weapons robbed from security forces and other illegally held arms within seven days, the deadline of which ended on

Days after Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla urged the people of the strife-torn state to voluntarily surrender looted and illegally held weapons, at least 15 firearms were handed over to police in three districts, officials said on Tuesday. Four firearms, including one SMC Carbine with a magazine and one double barrel, along with three hand grenades, were surrendered at Singjamei Police Station in Imphal West district, an official said. One self-loading rifle was handed over to Andro Police Station, while five firearms were surrendered by people at Sagolmang PS in Imphal East district. One 9 mm pistol and ammunition were surrendered before Heingang police personnel in Imphal East district, while four guns were handed over to police in Churachandpur, another official said. Bhalla had on February 20 urged the people to voluntarily surrender looted and illegally held weapons within seven days, assuring no punitive action would be initiated against those giving up arms during this ..

Similarly, intelligence-based operations launched in the general area of Moirang on February 22 by the Indian Army

In response to Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla's appeal to the people of the strife-torn state to voluntarily surrender looted and illegally held weapons within seven days, an umbrella body of Imphal-based civil society organisations of the Meiteis on Saturday requested him to "engage formally with local youth leaders to ensure a cooperative approach in recovering arms from civilian volunteers". In a statement, the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) also said that the "seven-day timeframe is too short for meaningful engagement with the stakeholders and the public." Bhalla had on February 20 urged the people of the state to surrender weapons within seven days, assuring no punitive action would be initiated against those giving up arms during this period. He, however, had asserted that "strict action" would be taken after the expiry of the deadline. COCOMI said, "We acknowledge this (governor's appeal for surrendering arms) as a necessary step under the law of the

The operations were conducted in the Imphal West, Bishnupur, Thoubal, Tengnoupal, Jiribam, and Kakching districts of Manipur

Security forces have arrested 11 militants from Manipur in the last two days, including seven suspected cadres of the Kuki National Army (KNA), along with arms and ammunition, police said on Sunday. The KNA cadres were apprehended from old Khaukual area in Churachandpur district on Friday, they said. KNA is a signatory of the tripartite suspension of operations (SoO) pact signed in 2008 among the United Peoples' Front (UPF) and the Kuki National Organisation (KNO), an umbrella of 24 insurgent groups, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs and the Manipur government. The Manipur government, however, withdrew from the pact in March 2023. In another operation on Saturday at Huikap village in Imphal East district, four active members of the proscribed outfit Kangleipak Communist Party (PWG group), including two women, were arrested, police said. Two AK-47 rifles, pistols, live ammunition, incriminating documents and booklets were among items recovered from their possession, they added. PT

Manipur Congress president Keisham Meghachandra on Friday claimed that a leadership crisis within the BJP and its failure to reach a consensus on a chief ministerial candidate led to the imposition of President's rule in the state. Meghachandra also said the central BJP leaders have finally begun to understand the ground situation in the strife-torn state. The leadership crisis that prevailed after resignation of the chief minister, and a divided house within the BJP (on selecting a new CM) led to imposition of President's rule, he told reporters here. President's rule was imposed in Manipur and the assembly put under suspended animation on Thursday evening, days after Chief Minister N Biren Singh resigned from his post that led to political uncertainty in the state. "Now, the prime minister has the whole responsibility... Now, (PM) Modi will hopefully look into the government's inability to function and start addressing the crisis in the state," Meghachandra said. The onus for ..

Rights activist Irom Sharmila on Friday claimed that the imposition of the President's rule in Manipur is "not a solution" but merely a way to "evade democratic accountability" for the ongoing ethnic violence in the state. In a telephonic interview with PTI, Sharmila emphasised the need for "honest political will" to restore peace in the strife-torn northeastern state and fresh elections "will not bring real change". Instead, Sharmila suggested that the titular king of Manipur be invited to serve as a symbol of unity with powers akin to those of the current governor". "The Presidential rule is not the solution. Manipuris have never wanted this. But since it is now the reality, let the Centre prioritise the restoration of the status quo ante for the internally displaced. Let Prime Minister Narendra Modi bring investments from industrialists' friends to provide at least basic infrastructure and development. The Presidential rule, when imposed in the past, was merely another way to avo

Reaffirming its commitment to maintaining Manipur's territorial integrity, the BJP on Friday said the state assembly, which was put in a suspended animation following the imposition of President's rule, could be revived on any future date depending on the ground situation. Sambit Patra, the BJP's northeast region in-charge, told PTI that his party was committed to continuing efforts to maintain peace and normalcy in the state, which has been hit by months-long violence between Meiteis and Kukis and remains polarised along ethnic lines. He noted that the assembly had not been dissolved but kept in a suspended animation, meaning that the formation of a new state government remained a possibility. The BJP continues to enjoy a comfortable majority in the assembly but the sharpening of ethnic differences meant the party's search for a consensus candidate to replace N Biren Singh, who resigned as chief minister a few days ago, remained futile. "The assembly is not dissolved and can be ..

The Congress on Friday said the imposition of President's rule in Manipur is a direct admission of the failure of the BJP governments at the Centre and the state, and asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to apologise to the people there. In a post on X, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said there is a Constitutional crisis in Manipur that forced the imposition of President's rule. "Narendra Modi ji, It is your party which has been ruling at the Centre for 11 years. It is your party which was ruling Manipur for 8 years. It is the BJP which was responsible for maintaining Law & Order in the state. "It is your government which is responsible for National Security and border patrol. The imposition of President's rule by YOU, suspending YOUR own party's government is a direct admission on how YOU failed the people of Manipur," Kharge said. He said the government has imposed President's rule not because it wanted to, but because there is a Constitutional crisis in the state, as none .

The President's Rule came as the BJP's state leadership failed to reach a consensus on a new chief minister, preventing the Assembly from convening

All eyes are now on the BJP central leadership over its next step in strife-torn Manipur, a day after President's rule was imposed in the northeastern state and the assembly put under suspended animation. Security has been beefed up across the state following the Centre's announcement of President's rule, officials said. President's rule was imposed in Manipur and the assembly put under suspended animation on Thursday evening, days after Chief Minister N Biren Singh resigned from his post that led to political uncertainty in the state. The decision came as the BJP failed to build a consensus on a chief ministerial candidate, despite having several rounds of discussions between its northeast in-charge Sambit Patra and legislators. Singh, who was heading the BJP government in Manipur, resigned as chief minister after nearly 21 months of ethnic violence that has claimed over 250 lives so far. The Manipur assembly has a tenure till 2027. Talking to reporters soon after the announceme

President's rule was imposed in Manipur on Thursday, four days after Chief Minister N Biren Singh resigned from his position. The assembly has also been put under suspended animation. Announcing the proclamation of the central rule, a notification issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs said President Droupadi Murmu is of the opinion that "a situation has arisen in which the government of that state cannot be carried on in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution". "Now, therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by Article 356 of the Constitution, and of all other powers enabling me in that behalf, I hereby proclaim that I assume to myself as President of India all functions of the Government of the State of Manipur and all powers vested in or exercisable by the Governor of that State," the notification said. The assembly has been put under suspended animation, the notification added.

A CRPF jawan allegedly killed two of his colleagues and injured eight others before taking his own life at a camp in Manipur on Thursday, official sources said. The incident took place at a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) camp in Lamphel located in the Imphal West district at around 8.20 pm, they said. Accused Havildar Sanjay Kumar opened fire from his weapon killing a constable and a sub-inspector of the force on the spot. He later turned the gun on himself and has been declared dead, the sources said. The accused was from the 120th battalion of the force. Eight CRPF personnel have been injured in the firing and they have been shifted to the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Imphal, they said. The cause of the incident is being investigated and there was no official word from the force immediately.

The Congress on Thursday said Article 174 that stipulates there cannot be more than a six month gap between two assembly sessions has been "violated" in Manipur and alleged that this is a "deliberate contempt of the Constitution". Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said the breakdown of constitutional machinery in Manipur and the agony of the people of the state continues as they still await a visit by PM Narendra Modi "who goes everywhere but Manipur". "Article 174 of the Constitution of India states: 'The Governor shall from time to time summon the House or each House of the Legislature of the State to meet at such time and place as he thinks fit, but six months shall not intervene between its last sitting in one session and the date appointed for its first sitting in the next session'," Ramesh said on X. The Governor of Manipur had convened the Assembly session to begin on February 10, 2025 and a no-confidence motion submitted by the Congress was to