Manipur: IDPs protest Sangai Festival; police resort to lathi-charge and tear gas
Imphal: Police resorted to lathi-charge and fired tear gas to disperse Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) protesting ahead of the Manipur government-sponsored Sangai Festival, scheduled to be held from November 21 to November 30 at various venues across the state.
The IDPs, supported by various social organisations, including the Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), staged protest rallies at the main venue of the event at Hapta Kangjeibung.
In the afternoon on Thursday, police resorted to lathi-charge and fired tear gas to disperse the crowds.
The protesters, chanting slogans such as "Down with Sangai Festival," continued marching amid the police action.
In the ensuing scuffle, several protesters, including women, were assaulted by police, and those arrested were taken to the relevant police stations in Imphal East district.
Male protesters were also beaten after being chased and surrounded by the police.
According to the law, male police personnel are not allowed to touch female protesters, but as seen in photographs, a male officer was reportedly thrashing a female IDP protester.
During the protests, many female protesters were beaten, some sustaining injuries.
"This will not be tolerated," a protester said on the sidelines of the protests.
Several organisations associated with the IDPs, including the Churachandpur Meitei United Committee, the Committee on Protection of Meitei Victims, Moreh (COPMeV), and other civil society organisations, boycotted the festival.
COCOMI, PANDM, IPSA, ACOAM-Lup, IPAK, KSA, ERDO, KANGLA MEI, KIL, CLK, SWA, LOYALUP, MIKAL, AKSIL, and ANDOK extended support to the boycott call.
The Sangai Festival, named after the state’s endangered brow-antlered deer, is Manipur’s biggest annual tourism event.
It has been celebrated since 2010, usually for ten days from November 21 to 30.
However, it was suspended for the past two years due to ethnic turmoil, which claimed over 260 lives and displaced more than 60,000 people.