Manipur News

Imphal, Jan 17NNN : All Manipur Tribal Union (AMTU) today urged upon the tribal people of Manipur to elect leaders in the ensuing Manipur general elections who can strengthen the Hill Area Committee (HAC), a sole institute which constitutionally protects the interest of the tribals, saying that the Government of Manipur is attempting to reduce them to victims of feudalism.
For example, the Reserve Forests in the district of Chandel were just declared in the year 1939 when the British colonial regime forcibly made the declaration under Indian Forest Act 1927 without the consent of the tribal chiefs, AMTU general secretary Romeo Bungdon stated while adding that the Manipur Forest Rules 1971 classified the forests of Manipur into three Reserve Forest, the Protected forest and the Unclassified Forest or Open Forest.
He said the State Government’s another policy is to transfer of power in recognition of a village while establishing from hills department to revenue department under the duress cabinet decision, most probably by overruling the Hill Area Committee.
The Government under its ambiguous policies will take up various land policies and land reformation against the aspiration of the tribal people, AMTU said, while adding that land grabbing and village displacements have already begun which is a gruesome violation of Article 371 of the Indian Constitution.
AMTU also said the tribal people should focus to elect leaders in the 10th Manipur Assembly elections who can strengthen the Hill Area Committee and further urged that hill based political parties and other leaders to necessitate such survival politics for retrieval strategies beyond political party lines which may ultimately eradicate threats of communal cord in the future.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/amtu-appeals-to-elect-good-leaders/

Mail News Service
Imphal, Jan 17: Discovering the movement of UG cadres at Wangoo, troops of 24 Assam Rifles of 26 Sector and 33 Assam Rifles of 73 Brigade launched joint operation in the area and apprehended one UNLF cadre on 17 Jan 12. The apprehendee was identified as No 1624 SS Pte Amom Atomba Meitei,29 yrs,s/o Mr Amom Ibotombi Singh,Wangoo Awang Leikei.
On 17 Jan, Troops of 33 Assam Rifles of Loktak Brigade under Red Shield Division along with troops of 24 Assam Rifles apprehended a cadre of UNLF from Sangram Wangu area. Identity of individual has been revealed as Amom Atorrba alias Romeo (29 years), r/o Wangu Awang Leikai, Napaching Makhong. Amom also confessed to his involvement in carrying out recruitment and tax collection on behalf of the banned terrorist outfit from the area Wangu. He has been handed over to Kumbi police station.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/militants-apprehended-4/

Dimapur/Imphal, Jan 17 NNN : Normal activities in Nagaland commercial hub Dimapur and the state capital Kohima and also in the Naga areas in Manipur were affected due to the 12 hour bandh called by the NSCN-IM in protest against the move of New Delhi that prevented Naga outfit’s chairman Isak Chisi Swu and its general secretary Th. Muivah from visiting Zunheboto on Saturday last.
Talking to Newmai News Network this evening, convenor of the NSCN-IM Steering Committee V.S Atem said the bandh ended at 6 pm on Tuesday which began this morning in ‘Nagalim’, meaning in all the ‘Naga areas’.
All the business establishments in Dimapur were seen shut during the bandh hours today. In the Nagaland state capital Kohima the severity of the 12-hour NSCN-IM bandh was also strong. No shops were seen opened today in Kohima. However, vehicles both private and public were seen plying as usual in Dimapur and Kohima.
In Senapati district headqurters, the shops were seen closed since this morning. Reports received from the district headqurters said that except few vegetable vendors more or less all the shops were shut due to the bandh. Similar reports were also received from the district headqurters of Ukhrul, Tamenglong and Chandel.
It is worth noting that on January 14, Thuingaleng Muivah and Isak Chisi Swu were on their way to Zunheboto from their camp Hebron in the large entourage consisting of about 70 vehicles but were stopped by the waiting Assam Rifles at Bade village led by an Assam Rifles brigadier at around 9:30 am. Bade village is located at about 20 kilometres from NSCN-IM’s Hebron camp.
The Assam Rifles asked Muivah and Swu not to go ahead with their visit to Zunheboto without obtaining a permission from the Ministry of Home Affairs. At around 3 pm the Ministry of Home Affairs had reportedly allowed Muivah and Isak Swu to visit Zunheboto but with certain conditions.
One condition of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for the NSCN-IM leaders’s tour to Zunheboto is that Muivah and Swu will travel without weapons. The second condition of the MHA to the NSCN-IM leaders is that personal security guards shall not carry weapons even in concealed manner. The third condition has been that the number of vehicles not to exceed twenty. and the NSCN-IM leaders will not hold any public meeting or press conference.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/nscn-bandh-affects-life/

Imphal, Jan 17 NNN: Manipur police retrieved five bombs in a single day from different locations in Manipur on Tuesday which aimed and threatened the Congress candidates and their supporters, the incidents which are often claimed responsibilities by the CorCorm (Coordination Committee) that imposed a ban on the national political party from Manipur.
A Chinese hand grenade was planted at the residence of one T. Kashi, (67), a Congress supporter at Ngaikhong Khullen under Nambol police station in Bishnupur district and another bomb was retrieved by police at the house of a Congress worker namely, Ch. Tomba, 64 in Bishnupur Ward No. 3 this early morning, police said.
In Thoubal district, a handgrenade was lobbed at the house of Kakching Municipal Council chairperson M. Inakkhunbi at Kakching Ningthou neighborhood, but the bomb did not explode.
A bomb was also recovered at the courtyard of M. Borajao, 55 of Lamlai Makha locality this morning. The police said he was also a Congress worker.
In Imphal west, a hand grenade was found planting on the side of a drain near a shop located just opposite to the main gate of Manipur University at Canchipur. It was not known as to why the bomb was planted there.
The five bombs were defused by the Manipur police bomb squad teams and later disposed them, the police added. 
On 17 Jan, acting on specific input, 6/8 Gorkha Rifles, of Logtak Brigade under Red Shield Division, alongwith Bishnupur Police Commandos recovered three live Grenades, one from Ward No 03 and two from Naikhong Khulen area in Bishenpur District.
The suspected houses were immediately cordoned, vacated and a thorough search of the area was carried out. The grenades could have caused extensive damage to life and property had they not been detected in time. The grenades were placed by functionaries of unknown underground groups to instil fear in the minds of people in wake of the forthcoming elections.
Two active workers of Congress have been reportedly kidnapped by suspected militants somewhere between Senapati district headquarters and Karong in the district yesterday, a police source said Tuesday.
The police just named the two abducted individuals as Thoii and Lamkhai, both natives of Oinam village in Senapati district and they are supporters of Education and Youth & Sports Affairs Minister, DD Thaisii who is also contesting the coming January 28 Manipur Assembly poll from Karong assembly constituency.
At around 5 pm yesterday, some unknown armed men kidnapped Thoii and Lamkhai at a place between Senapati district headquarters and Karong, said the police. Senapati is a hill district of Manipur which is about 65 km from the state capital Imphal.
However, the police did not provide full particulars of the abducted Indian National Congress (INC) workers or the details on which militant group involved in the kidnapping.

Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/five-bombs-found-workers-kidnapped/