Officials reported on Saturday that over 200 members of the Meitei community have been evacuated from their villages in Manipur’s Jiribam district and relocated to a newly established relief camp following violence triggered by the alleged killing of a man by militants.
The homes of those now residing in the relief camp at Jiri Sports Complex were burned in the outlying villages of Lamtai Khunou, Dibong Khunou, Nunkhal, and Begra by suspected militants.
Most of the displaced individuals had been living in villages more than 30 kilometers from Jiribam town. An official stated that “additional security personnel have been dispatched to the area.”
The Manipur police have ordered state police commando personnel based in Imphal Valley to deploy to Jiribam immediately.
Tension flared in Jiribam district, which has been troubled by ethnic conflict, on Thursday evening after a 59-year-old man from one community was allegedly killed by militants from another community, police reported.
The victim, identified as Soibam Saratkumar Singh, went missing after going to his farm in the morning. His body was later found with wounds inflicted by a sharp object, according to a police officer.
Following the incident, angry locals set fire to an abandoned structure in retaliation, the officer added.
Residents also staged a protest in front of the Jiribam police station, demanding the return of their licensed firearms, which had been confiscated during the elections.
Jiribam, with its diverse ethnic composition of Meiteis, Muslims, Nagas, Kukis, and non-Manipuris, had previously remained unaffected by the ethnic strife that has been ongoing in Manipur since May last year.
The ethnic conflict between the Meiteis of Imphal Valley and the hill-based Kukis has led to the deaths of over 200 people and displaced thousands.
