NEW DELHI: Violence continues in the northeastern state of Manipur, with miscreants torching the residence of Union Minister Rajkumar Ranjan Singh in Imphal’s Kongba on Thursday night.
The residence in Imphal was set on fire while the minister was in Kerala.
Speaking exclusively to ANI, MoS MEA said, “It is extremely sad to see what happened last night. I was told that more than 50 miscreants attacked my home at around 10 pm. Damage has been done to the ground floor and the first floor of my residence. Neither me or anybody from my family was present during that time. Thankfully, nobody got injured.”
While Singh comes from the Meiti community, he has continued to appeal to both sides to stay away from violence and restore peace in the state.
“An eye for an eye will make the whole world go blind. Violence doesn’t help any cause. Those who are indulging in this violence are doing a huge disservice to the nation. It also reflects that they are enemies of humanity,” Singh tells ANI.
On June 14 in Imphal East, nine people were killed while more than 10 were injured. Yesterday, the state government extended the clamp on internet in the state up to June 20.
On Wednesday, miscreants tried to burn down the official residence of Manipur minister Nemcha Kipgen in Imphal West. His home was partly burnt.
Since the last month and a half, there have been restrictions in the state of Manipur, including clamp down on the internet.
On May 29, Union Home Minister Amit Shah visited the northeastern state for a period of four days during which he held meetings with Chief Minister N Biren Singh, leaders of all political parties, civil society, women groups, tribal groups and security personnel. Shah had announced that a peace committee would be formed in the state. The committee was formed days after the announcement by the Home Minister.
Violence gripped Manipur on May 3, as clashes were witnessed during a rally organised by the All Tribals Students Union (ATSU) to protest the demand for the inclusion of Meitei/Meetei in the Scheduled Tribe (ST) list.
The ethnic violence continues to grip the state for over a month, in the wake of a directive of the High Court asking the state government to consider including the Meitei community in the list of Scheduled Tribes (STs).
Central paramilitary forces were posted in the state to control the violence and they still continue to be deployed across the state. (ANI)