Man killed in Manipur as governor visits relief camp in district

GUWAHATI: Unidentified gunmen kept the pot boiling in restive Manipur for the sixth consecutive week, killing a 22-year-old man in a village of Churachandpur while governor Anusuiya Uikey was visiting relief camps for the displaced in the district Monday and wounding two others in another attack near the border between Kangpokpi and Imphal East.
The Churachandpur attack occurred a little after 2pm at Loklakphai village, a police officer said. The victim was identified as village volunteer Muansang Naulak.
Hours earlier, around 10.45am, armed assailants had raided the Khamenlok and Khopibung areas of Saikul assembly constituency in Kangpokpi, firing at a group of civilians and setting houses ablaze. Houses across Khopibung village were gutted.
Killers fled the spot by the time troops arrived
Although part of another district, the area is under the jurisdiction of Imphal East Police. By the time Assam Rifles and Gorkha Rifles troops arrived at the village, the gunmen had fled the scene, sources said. During her visit to relief camps in Churachandpur, Manipur governor Anusuiya Uikey interacted with the inmates and assured them of all possible assistance. She later visited camps in the Moirang area of Bishnupur district.
Uikey is the chairperson of the peace committee set up by the Centre to restore normalcy in the state. More than 100 people have been killed and 300-odd wounded in the ethnic violence in the state since May 3. The Army announced on Monday that it had repaired and reopened a bridge at Leitanpokpi in Imphal East district that was damaged by miscreants last month. The bridge enables quick transportation of relief material to Leitanpokpi, Champai and Pukhao Phurju. Curfew remains in force in 11 of the 16 districts of Manipur. Suspension of internet services hasn't been revoked either.