Inter-village firing leaves six seriously wounded in Manipur

Six persons today sustained serious gunshot injuries in heavy firing exchanged between two tribal villages in Senapati district over a long standing land dispute, police said.
The incident occurred early this morning between the villagers of Maram Khunou and Khabong Karong, which is separated by a river, a police official said.
As per the hospital, all the injured, who were rushed to the hospital, belong to Khabong Karong village.
The District Magistrate has imposed Section 144 CrPC to control the volatile situation and a large number of district police along with 35 Assam Rifles personnel have been deployed in the area to prevent further violence, he said.

Meanwhile, family members of a 19-year-old victim Th Vini, who was brought to the hospital in Imphal said villagers of Maram Khunou allegedly constructed sixty houses during the last three weeks beyond their traditional boundary which created tension.
On the other hand, unofficial reports said that the firing was started by villagers of Maram Khunou when a team of villagers of Khabong Karong went to the area to dismantle the newly constructed houses.