Curfew imposed in three Manipur districts amid protests

Guwahati: In view of escalating protest of students backed by civil society groups, the Manipur government on Tuesday imposed a temporary internet ban in the state and clamped curfews in three districts preventing people from coming outside their houses.

The prohibitory orders of the two Imphal districts administrations came in the wake of students planning to intensify their protests demanding the removal of the Director General of Police and security advisor to the state government for their alleged inability to deal with the law and order situation in the state.

Informing that at least one person was hit on the thigh by a bullet fired from a protesting crowd of students in Thoubal district on Monday, security sources said that the prohibitory orders of the administration in the district prevented the assembly of five or more persons.

The students were marching towards police headquarters and the DC office. Police in a statement said that the unruly mob also damaged one vehicle parked outside the court complex. An ambulance carrying some injured personnel was also pelted with stones, it added.

The Manipur home department released an order to “ curb/temporarily suspend internet and mobile data services including Lease Lines, VSATs, Broadbands and VPN services” in the State for five days from Tuesday (September 10, 2024) 3 p.m. to Sunday (September 15, 2024) 3 p.m.

The order stated that order is justified by satisfying conditions like an apprehension of “some anti-social elements” using social media to share images, hate speech and hate video messages to incite “the passions of the public”.

It also stated that inflammatory material and false rumours might be shared through social media, SMS and dongle services, which could lead to an “imminent danger of loss of life and/or damage to public/private property, and widespread disturbances to public tranquillity and communal harmony.”

Meanwhile, hundreds of students from various schools and colleges spent the night at a makeshift camp set up at Khwairamband Women Market in Imphal. The students, in their uniforms, were helped by women shopkeepers to set up camps at the market.

The student leader Ch Victor Singh told reporters, “We have given a 24-hour deadline for Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya’s response to the six demands we have placed. We will decide our future course of action after the deadline ends.”

Student representatives who also met Governor Acharya later told reporters that they have placed six demands, including the removal of the Director General of Police (DGP) and the security advisor to the state government for their alleged failure to control the violence. They also called for the Unified Command, currently chaired by former CRPF DG Kuldiep Singh, to be handed over to the state government.

It is significant that at least 11 people have been killed in different incidents of ethnic violence in the state since September 1. The incidents have triggered students-led massive protests in the valley areas, particularly in Thoubal and Imphal. At least 20 people, including police personnel, were injured after a confrontation broke out between the protesters and police in Thoubal.