The lone woman Minister in Manipur, Mirabai Akoijam, had a providential escape when a powerful foreign-made bomb exploded near her house on Saturday night. There was no casualty. The Minister was inside her home. Undeterred by the blast, she came out within minutes to inspect the site, hardly 300 metres away from her house. The bomb had been placed in a local school.
Condemning the blast she said it was reprehensible to defile a school in such a way. She appealed to the insurgents to participate in the democratic process. If there were further acts of violence it would be assumed that they were anti-people organisations. It may be recalled that some underground organisations have given a call for boycott of Lok Sabha elections. The police fear that there may be more violence before the final phase of elections on April 17 in the State.
Blast at Wangkhei Ashangbi
In another incident on Sunday, a powerful bomb went off at Wangkhei Ashangbi in Imphal east district. The remote controlled bomb caused a crater. There were no casualties. According to the police, the bomb had been planted near an empty shop in a market.