Violence Escalates In Manipur As Mob Targets Armories Again, One Shot Dead In Police Retaliation

In the midst of heightened violence in Manipur, state armories were targeted once again on Tuesday (13 February) night, resulting in the death of an individual who was reportedly part of a crowd attempting to breach one armory and successfully looted another as per a report by The Indian Express.

The state has witnessed intense gunfights this week, particularly in the outskirts of Imphal East district, predominantly inhabited by the Meitei community, and Kangpokpi district, where the Kuki-Zomi community is prominent.

During the incident, a person died while allegedly trying to storm the 6th IRB battalion at Pangei in Imphal East on Tuesday night in retaliatory action of police.

"A large group of people had gathered there around 10 pm. It seems their intention was to seize arms from the establishment... They breached the security perimeter, broke the gate, and entered the armory area," stated a senior police official.

Similarly, the 5^th IRB battalion located in Thengju Chingjin, Imphal East, was also mobbed, and a police official confirmed that the mob managed to seize arms and ammunition from there.

Despite more than nine months passing since the conflict began in Manipur, there are ongoing attempts to breach security establishments with the aim of looting arms and ammunition.