Manipur Police has arrested 32 people so far in the case of arson and damage to property

Seven additional people were detained by Manipur Police on Friday in relation to November 16 arson and property damage events involving elected officials. This raises the total to thirty-two arrests.

Police authorities in Manipur said the fresh arrests took place on November 20 and 21.

In addition to the 25 (twenty-five) people detained on previous days, Manipur Police apprehended seven (07) more people on November 20 and 21, 2024, in connection with instances involving arson and property destruction of elected members on November 16, 2024, the police authorities said in a post on X.

The names of those detained include Aribam Mirachandra Sharma (41), Monish Nepram (31), Khundrakpam Bikram Singh (41), and Wahengbam Jyotikumar Singh (26).Laimayum Kedarnath Sharma (37), Lourembam Norojit Singh alias Nonni Singh (40), and Elangbam Harison Singh alias Dada (34).

The Manipur Police said on its social media site X that they are still conducting an inquiry.

In the outskirts and weak spots of the hill and valley districts, police also carried out search operations and area domination by security forces. It has been guaranteed that 50 and 432 cars transporting necessary goods will go via NH-37 and NH-2.

To guarantee the free and secure transit of the vehicles, stringent security procedures are implemented in all susceptible areas, and a security escort is supplied in hazardous areas. No one was arrested by the police in relation to infractions at any of the 105 Nakas/Checkpoints that were set up in various districts of Manipur, both in the valley and the hills.

In related news, Congressman P Chidambaram criticized Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh’s handling of the state’s current situation, to which Singh has replied vehemently. A message that Chidambaram had posted and then removed blamed the Chief Minister for the issue, implying that his leadership was to blame for the state of affairs in Manipur. Singh said that Chidambaram was the “root cause” of the state’s continuous violence.

In reaction to the violence, a number of Manipur MLAs issued a resolution on Monday stating their demands. The federal government was urged by the resolution to reevaluate imposing the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) on the state. In addition, the MLAs called for an operation against Kuki terrorists, who are suspected of murdering six people in Jiribam, including women and children, within seven days.

The resolution also requested that three significant cases—including inquiries into the murders of six people, a burned lady, and a woman farmer—be transferred to the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

Following the recent escalation and the discovery of six corpses, the state administration took preventive action by suspending internet connectivity in seven areas.