Four general strikes end in Manipur, a new one imposed

Three general strikes and one public curfew of different durations which had paralysed normal life in Manipur ended one after another.

However the drivers plying along the 222-km-long Imphal-Jiribam national highway 37 imposed another 48-hour strike demanding improvement of the Khongsang-Noney road within the Tamenglong district through which the highway snakes.

At the end of the 42-hour public curfew called by the Joint Committee on Inner Line Permit System (JCILPS) many sections of the people came out in the streets on Saturday to shout slogans demanding the implementation of the Inner Line Permit system in Manipur to protect the indigenous peoples.

Khomdram Ratan, convener of the JCILPS said, "Because of cooperation from all sections of people there was no untoward incident. There was no complaint of obstruction of the employees of essential services".

He also disclosed that the women's wing of the JCILPS will be launching an agitation shortly.

The women activists had tried to storm the office of the Imphal west district collector pointing out that the number of outsiders in the voters' lists in several municipal wards far exceeds the indigenous people.

Meanwhile, despite an assurance by Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh, a copy of the post mortem examination of Sagolshem Prasanta, who was found "hanging" in a Muslim village on April 24, was not made available to the joint action committee (JAC) seeking justice for the victim.

The JAC has vowed to launch an agitation.

On the other hand, a Muslim group expressed its unhappiness over the government "not disclosing the cause of the death" of Prasanta and the police inability to make any headway in its investigation.

Meanwhile, activists have stepped up demands for the arrest of the three Muslim youths who had opened fire on some women and students at Nungrei on April 17, injuring 14 of them.

On the other hand, the Mayang Imphal coordinating clubs on Saturday gave Rs.200,000 to two victims of gunshot injuries at Mayang Imphal Konchak.

As a follow-up of the lynching of two alleged scooter lifters there were clashes between two groups on April 11 during which over 60 persons sustained bullet injuries. They included three police personnel.

Though the government has announced compensation of Rs.500,000 each to the families of the lynched persons nothing was given to other victims.

A spokesperson of the clubs said that an agitation will be launched against the double standards of the government.

Police have failed to nab anyone and solve the seven recent sensational murders in some districts. This has inflamed the people and there have been series of agitations.

All educational institutions, shops and business establishments including banks were closed down during the strikes and public curfew.

Prices of consumer items were jacked up on the pretext that nothing could be brought from Assam in the past few days.

--IANS

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