Eight killed in Manipur violence
Rioters go on the rampage to protest new tribal rights law
At least eight people were killed and 27 injured when protesters went on the rampage during a general strike called by students' unions in northeastern Indian state of Manipur overnight over controversial tribal rights laws, media reports said yesterday.
Indefinite curfew was imposed in Churachandpur town following the violence late on Monday. The town is 60km southwest of Manipur state capital Imphal, PTI reported.
Police fired on the protesters in Manipur state after they torched the homes of local and federal lawmakers, hours after the bills passed through the local parliament.
Tensions have been brewing in recent weeks ahead of a vote on three bills aimed at giving more rights to indigenous groups who accuse "outsiders" of taking land and jobs.
Three bullet-riddled bodies were found in Churachandpur town on Monday and another four yesterday while a charred body was also recovered from under the debris at the residence of a legislator Manga Vaiphei yesterday morning in the town, PTI quoted a police officer as saying.
The houses of a junior minister, an MP and five state legislators were set on fire by the protesters in Churachandpur town.
Churachandpur district hospital authorities said 20 persons were admitted to the hospital on Monday, of which seven were discharged after first-aid.
The three bills, passed in the Assembly on Monday, which provoked the tribal students to indulge in violence and arson are: Protection of Manipur People Bill, 2015, Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms (Seventh amendment) Bill, 2015, and Manipur Shops and Establishments (Second Amendment) Bill, 2015.