Imphal, June 8: The Manipur government has imposed curfews and suspended mobile internet services for five days across five valley districts — Bishnupur, Imphal West, Imphal East, Thoubal, and Kakching — after violent protests broke out in the state capital on Saturday night over the arrest of a key leader of the Meitei youth group Arambai Tenggol (AT).
The arrest of Kanan Singh, a prominent figure within AT, triggered an immediate backlash on the streets of Imphal. Protesters, many of them young Meitei men affiliated with the controversial group, blocked roads with burning tyres and raised slogans demanding Singh’s release. Nighttime visuals showed large crowds gathering despite restrictions, with security forces struggling to contain the unrest.
AT, often accused by Kuki tribal groups of orchestrating attacks on their villages during last year’s ethnic clashes, remains a deeply polarising force in the state’s fractured social fabric. Some demonstrators claimed that AT had voluntarily surrendered looted weapons following appeals from Governor Anusuiya Uikey and are no longer armed — a claim that could not be independently verified.
The volatile situation in the valley unfolded even as tensions simmered in the Kuki-dominated hill town of Moreh, where civil society groups called a shutdown in Tengnoupal district to protest what they termed the “arbitrary arrest” of Kamginthang Gangte.
Gangte is accused of fatally shooting police officer Chingtham Anand with a sniper rifle in October 2023. His arrest has reignited anger among Kuki groups, who view the law enforcement action as selective and heavy-handed.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA), which is probing several high-profile cases linked to the ethnic violence in Manipur, is said to be looking into both Gangte’s case and AT chief Korounganba Khuman’s activities. Police sources admit that the state’s deep ethnic divide has complicated investigations, with both Meitei and Kuki communities resisting arrests of individuals from their respective groups.
With the state again on the brink, authorities say the measures — including curfew and communication blackouts — are essential to prevent a wider flare-up.
Senior officials are monitoring the situation closely as both communities brace for more confrontations, underscoring the fragile peace in a state still reeling from last year’s deadly ethnic violence.
