As Manipur witnessed another volatile situation again after a lull, the Thadou Students’ Association (TSA), in a statement issued on Sunday, has appealed “for calm and peace in the wake of fresh escalating violence in Manipur.
The TSA statement mentioned the “brutal murder” of an innocent woman during the attack on Zairawn village, Jiribam district, on November 7, which was followed by November 9 incident of the killing of a woman at Saitol, an adjoining area of Churachandpur and Bishnupur districts, and also the killing of six people including three women and three children. The TSA said it strongly condemned the “horrible violent incidents that took the lives of the helpless, innocent people”.
The statement then said, “On November 11, 11 men were shot dead by personnel of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in a contested firing incident in Borobekra area in Jiribam district. On the same day, six IDPs, including three women and three young children, went missing, believed to be taken hostage. The dead bodies of one woman and two children out of the six missing persons were found near the remote village of Jirimukh in Jiribam district on November 15 evening. The bodies of the rest of them were reportedly recovered from the Barak River on November 16”.
All lives matter, the TSA said, “we condemn” all the violent incidents. The TSA then expressed its “profound” sympathy and condolences to the bereaved families. “The Thadou community, being the most affected community in the current Manipur violence, advocates for peace and non-violent resolutions,” it added.
While the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has taken “prompt steps” following the outbreak of the fresh violence, such as handing over of the cases to NIA and immediate reimposition of AFSPA in six police stations in five districts, “we have serious concerns over the prevailing situation,” the TSA added.
The TSA then urged the Government of India to take the situation seriously and take further urgent actions to prevent further escalation, to effectively end this cycle of violence once and for all, and to bring justice and lasting peace in the state.
The TSA demanded immediate identification and arrest of the perpetrators in the killing of Zosangkim and Sonia Devi. “We also demand a high-level impartial inquiry into the incident leading to the death of 11 Hmar men and 6 Meitei persons including women and children and take appropriate actions against the offenders as per law,” the TSA added.
