GUWAHATI: After a brief lull, a Meitei village volunteer was killed in a firing incident in strife-torn Manipur in the wee hours of Saturday even as the police arrested the editor of a local daily for allegedly promoting enmity between communities.
The firing incident occurred at a foothill area on the border of Meitei-majority Imphal West and Kuki-majority Kangpokpi districts.
James Ningombam (27), who was grievously injured in the leg, succumbed to his injuries soon after he was admitted to the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences in state capital Imphal.
The deceased was a former journalist who briefly worked with a local daily. His father is an officer in the Manipur Police.
Chief Minister N Biren Singh condemned the killing and assured that the perpetrators of the crime would not be spared.
“The incident is highly condemnable and under investigation. Combing operations (by security personnel) are on and will continue. We will not spare the culprits,” Singh told journalists.
“Various organisations in the hills and the Imphal valley are trying hard to restore peace. But somewhere, some evil elements are trying to disturb peace,” he said.
He appealed to all concerned to come to the negotiating table and help restore peace and normalcy.
The last such incident in the state occurred on December 4. Thirteen people were then killed in the Tengnoupal district.
The ethnic violence between Kuki-Zo tribals and Meiteis, which broke out on May 3, left some 200 people dead and 60,000 others displaced. Hundreds of religious institutions were also either torched or damaged.
Meanwhile, Wangkhemcha Shyamjai, editor of local daily Kangleipakki Meira and former president of All Manipur Working Journalists’ Union, was arrested by the police on Friday for allegedly promoting enmity between communities.
The arrest was made based on a complaint lodged by a leader of ruling BJP. He had approached the police demanding action against Shyamjai for an “unfiltered news publication”.
The Congress criticised the arrest of the senior journalist and demanded his immediate release.