One killed in suspected rocket attack on former Manipur CM’s residence

Locals said a missile-like object arced in on the house from behind the hills adjoining Moirang area of Bishnupur district leaving a senior citizen dead and five others injured

Updated - September 08, 2024 05:47 pm IST - GUWAHATI

The spot where a rocket-like object fell killing a 70-year-old man in Manipur’s Moirang town on Friday.

The spot where a rocket-like object fell killing a 70-year-old man in Manipur’s Moirang town on Friday. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

GUWAHATI

A 70-year-old man was killed and five others were injured when a “rocket” fell on the house of late Mairembam Koireng Singh, Manipur’s first Chief Minister, in Bishnupur district on Friday (September 6, 2024).

Locals said a missile-like object with a smoke tail arced in on the house from behind the hills beyond Sendra Road area of Bishnupur district’s Moirang town. The incident happened at 3.30 p.m.

Bishnupur is in the Meitei-majority Imphal Valley while the hills and beyond, in Churachandpur district, are dominated by Kuki-Zo people. A conflict between the two communities has continued intermittently since May 3, 2023.

Police said the deceased was identified as R.K. Rabei of Moirang Pheewangbam Leikai. “The injured have been evacuated to a hospital and the area has been cordoned off,” he said.

The explosive that killed a 70-year-old in Manipur on Friday.

The explosive that killed a 70-year-old in Manipur on Friday. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Spate of attacks

A neighbour of the former Chief Minister, who died in 1994, said the “rocket” landed near where the victims were erecting a structure for an upcoming religious function. “They were hit by pieces that flew off the rocket,” he said.

This was the third attack by bombs or bomb-like objects since September 1, indicating the resumption of violence between the two warring communities after almost a four-month lull. The Manipur government claimed that “Kuki extremists” used drones to carry out some of the attacks.

Two people were killed and at least a dozen others were injured during the earlier attacks in Imphal West district.

Kuki groups claimed people in Imphal Valley died because of missiles misfired by the Manipur police and Meitei radical organisations such as the Arambai Tenggol. “There are no Kuki positions near places where the incidents happened,” the Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum said.

The Meitei Heritage Society, a Delhi-based group rubbished this claim. “Understandably, this is a desperate attempt by the ITLF to lie through its teeth as there is no other way to justify the terror act of Kuki militants killing Meitei civilians through drone bombings and missile attacks. We expect more such lies from them,” it said.

Human chain

Before Friday’s incident, hundreds of people across five districts of Imphal Valley formed human chains to protest the “drone and gun attacks” that took away a couple of lives, including that of a 31-year-old woman, less than a week ago.

The protestors also vented their anger against the State government for failing to handle the ongoing conflict. They carried placards with slogans such as ‘Drone bombing is an act of terrorism’, ‘Manipur’s territorial integrity cannot be compromised’, and ‘We want peace; save Manipur’.

Later, the valley-based Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) called for an indefinite public curfew in the State from Friday. “Individuals are advised to remain at home as they are no longer secure outside. All educational institutions, including schools and colleges, should also close immediately and indefinitely,” the organisation said in a statement.

L. Nandakumar Singh, Director of Education (Schools), subsequently issued an order directing all government schools, government-aided, private and Central schools to remain closed “in view of the unrest and prevailing situation in the State and keeping in mind the safety of the students and teachers”.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.