Manipur: Day after two killed in Churachandpur, tribal group seeks removal of senior officials

A day after two persons were killed in Manipur’s Churachandpur district during protests against a Kuki-Zo head constable being suspended, the Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum demanded that the superintendent of police and deputy commissioner leave the district within 24 hours, The Hindu reported.

The Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum, an umbrella body of the Kuki-Zo community, demanded that the officials – both of whom are from the Manipur cadre – be replaced with Union Territory cadre officers who are “preferably from the Kuki-Zo community”. Shivanand Surve is the superintendent of police while S Dharun Kumar is the deputy commissioner.

On Thursday, two persons were killed and 30 were injured after a mob stormed a government complex housing the offices of the superintendent of police and the district commissioner. The mob allegedly set fire to several buses and trucks used by security forces and the superintendent of police’s office.

They were protesting the suspension of police head constable Siamlalpaul after a video went viral on social media showing him posing with “armed miscreants” on Wednesday. The police, in the order suspending him, said this amounted to grave misconduct.

Commenting on the deaths of the two persons during the protests on Thursday, the Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum said that the superintendent of police and deputy commissioner were “entirely responsible”,...

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