Amit Shah, who is on a day-long visit to Assam, appealed to the people of Manipur to maintain peace and resolve all disputes through dialogue.
“There were clashes in Manipur after the verdict of a court. I would appeal to both groups they should maintain peace, and justice will be given to all who suffered in the clashes. I will myself go to Manipur after few days and will stay there for three days and will talk to people of Manipur for establishing peace.” Amit Shah said.
“But before that, both groups should remove mistrust and suspicion among themselves and ensure that peace is restored in the state,” he added.
A renewed spurt of violence, arson and vandalism involving suspected militants and organised mobs in Manipur on Wednesday left one person dead and two other wounded. Indefinite curfew was back in flashpoint Bishnupur and the curfew-relaxation window in Imphal West shortened by another four hours.
There were reports that militants late Tuesday night torched the houses of some villagers at Toronglaobi in Bishnupur district.
03:06
Manipur: Three incidents of fresh violence reported in Kadangband of Imphal West district
Clashes broke out in Manipur after a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ was organised in the hill districts on May 3 to protest against the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.
The violence in Manipur was preceded by tension over the eviction of Kuki villagers from reserve forest land, which had led to a series of smaller agitations.
Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur’s population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley. Tribals — Nagas and Kukis — constitute another 40 per cent of the population and reside in the hill districts.
The ethnic clashes claimed over 70 lives and some 10,000 army and paramilitary personnel had to be deployed in the state to restore normalcy.