IMPHAL, April 25: The 24-hour statewide bandh called to protest the alleged custodial death of a 27-year-old man earlier this month affected normal life in Manipur’s Imphal valley on Friday, officials said.
Markets and educational establishments were closed and public vehicles remained off the roads in Imphal East and Imphal West district, they said.
A Joint Action Committee (JAC) formed in connection with the “custodial death” of Khoisnam Sanajaoba called for the shutdown from midnight of Thursday.
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At parts of the Khurai constituency from where Khoisnam Sanajaoba hails, protesters blocked roads and burnt unused tyres in the middle of roads to enforce the bandh.
Security deployment in the state capital and in Khurai, Lamlong and Porompat areas on Imphal East has been increased, they said.
The Manipur government on Thursday imposed prohibitory orders in parts of Imphal East district ahead of a 24-hour statewide bandh.
The orders prohibited the assembly of five or more people, carrying sticks, stones, firearms, sharp weapons and explosive materials from midnight of April 24 to midnight of April 25.
The prohibition shall apply in the areas of Khurai, Lamlong and Porompat in Imphal East district, it said.
The JAC has been demanding an impartial investigation into the alleged “custodial death” of Khoisnam. It said it had submitted a memorandum to the governor listing a charter of demands on April 17 but no response has been received from the government’s side.
Earlier, the JAC along with other local clubs and Meira Paibis (women groups) have been staging sit-ins to protest the death while demanding an impartial investigation.
The JAC asserted that Khoisnam was a “village volunteer” and was arrested by the state police on March 31 last month along with the four others for their alleged association with the proscribed outfit Kangleipak Communist Party (Nongdrenkhomba).
The JAC said that Khoisnam was sent to Manipur Central Jail at Sajiwa on April 10 and was admitted to Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences on April 13 where he was later pronounced dead.
Manipur, which witnessed the killing of at least 260 people in ethnic violence since May 2023, is currently under President’s rule. (PTI)
