Fresh clashes broke out between demonstrators and police personnel in Manipur’s Churachandpur town on Friday night, with the security forces using batons, tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the mob.
It was rumoured that several people were killed and injured in police action in the town, hours after a bandh called by the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) concluded at 4 p.m. However, no official confirmation was available.
The eight-hour shutdown, called to protest against the eviction of Kuki villagers from protected forests, paralysed normal life in the tribal-dominated southern Manipur district.
