Imphal: The situation in Manipur’s violence-hit Churachandpur remained “critical”, with unidentified miscreants setting fire to a government building, even as a night curfew was imposed in the district from Saturday, officials said.
A group of people set fire to the office building of the Range Forest Officer in Toibong area around midnight, and several fire tenders were called in to douse the fire, he said.
Government property worth lakhs was reportedly destroyed in the fire and official documents were burnt, a police officer said.
According to an official notification, night curfew has been imposed in the district from 5 pm to 5 am till further orders.
Prohibitory orders under Section 144 of CrPC and suspension of mobile internet services will also continue in the district, officials said.
“The situation remains critical. Security has been beefed up at all major junctions and major places in the city to prevent any untoward incident,” the police officer said.
Fresh clashes broke out between protesters and police in the town of Churachandpur on Friday night, with security forces using batons, tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd.
Locals claimed that some people were killed and many injured in the police action, hours after the bandh called by the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) ended at 4 pm. However, there was no official confirmation of people being killed or injured.
An eight-hour bandh called to protest against the eviction of Kuki villagers from protected forests paralyzed normal life in the tribal-dominated southern Manipur district.
Earlier on Friday, clashes broke out between protesters and police at Sadbhavana Mandap in New Lamka in Churachandpur district, where Chief Minister N Biren Singh was scheduled to address a public meeting, police said.
However, Singh called off the visit following protests and a bandh call.
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