Manipur women stage protest demanding removal of security forces from Moreh

IMPHAL, 31 Jul: Over 1,000 women on Monday staged a protest in Manipur’s Churachandpur, demanding immediate removal of state police forces from Moreh town.

They have threatened to launch a massive agitation in all the hill districts if their demand is not met.

On 28 July, thousands of Kuki-Zo women in Tengnoupal district had blocked the road to Moreh, bordering Myanmar, to stop police forces from entering the town.

A convoy of 10 vehicles of security forces, including the Indian Reserve Battalion, the Manipur Rifles and commandoes were heading towards Moreh town when the womenfolk obstructed them at Tengnoupal.

The protest by the women of Churachandpur comes a day after the opposition bloc INDIA on Sunday said that if the conflict in Manipur is not resolved soon, it may create security problems for the whole nation.

A delegation of the non-BJP coalition, which visited Manipur state for two days from Saturday, slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his “silence,” and for showing “brazen indifference” to the ongoing ethnic strife in the northeastern state. (PTI)