IMPHAL, June 21: Normal life was partly affected in Imphal today during the 12 hour state wide bandh called by the Communist party of India (CPI) state unit from 5 am to 5pm against the state government failure on various issues and against the police action on workers of the party yesterday during a rally taken out by the party marching towards the state Assembly.
There were however no reports of any untoward incidents, though most inter-state and inter-district passenger vehicles remained off the road.
The number of women vendors at the three main market shed in Imphal were also low, while most shops in both Paona and Thangal bazars remained shut for the day, though some remained open.
While some schools remained closed, government offices remained open as usual and the bandh failed to make much difference to the employee attendance in the government offices.
Early morning, bandh supporters came out on the street at Lamlong area and asked all shops to remain closed.
Kuki Inpi expresses concern over burning down of 23 houses
SAIKUL, June 21 (NNN): The Kuki Inpi, Saikul Gamkai has expressed deep concern over the burning down of 23 houses of Thingjang village by the villagers of Khongbal Tangkhul on June 14.
“The incident was a very unfortunate one which was a result of a dispute over a piece of land between the two villages,” said the Kuki Inpi, Saikul Gamkhai.
“The burning down of houses/ huts and extermination of standing crops by spraying pesticides was an uncivilised act which has no place in this civilised world. The Kuki Inpi, Saikul Gamkai, therefore urged both Thingjang and Khongbal Tangkhul villages to reason it out and solve the land dispute in good faith according to tribal customary laws for the sake of peace, communal harmony and good neighbourly relations,” advised Thangkam Lupheng, president of Kuki Inpi, Saikul Gamkhai.
On June 14, headman of Thingjang village under Saikul in Senapati district of Manipur had alleged that a large number of armed people from the neighbouring village of Khongbal Tangkhul had torched around 20 houses and destroyed standing vegetable crops grown in the field measuring about 20 acre in the former village.
Tangkhohao Haokip, chief of the Thingjang village had told Newmai News Network that around 20 houses in the village were burned down by armed persons from the nieghbouring village who later destroyed the standing crops by smearing poisonous substance in the field.
He had claimed that the properties lost in the arson including the devastation of the crops worth around 20 lakh.
The village chief then urged the concerned authorities to look into the matter at the earliest and demanded that the Government pay proper compensation to the victims of the incident.
He also warned that launching of intense agitation might become the only choice of the Thingjing villagers if the Government fails to act on time.