Manipur : Mob burn Central minister’s residence in Imphal

way2barak, June 16 : Violating curfew, Union Minister of State for External Affairs Rajkumar Ranjan Singh’s house in Imphal town was vandalised and set on fire by a mob, officials said on Friday.

Police officials said that a mob of 200 men and women attacked the Central Minister’s residence late Thursday night.

Singh, who is also the Minister of state for Education, is now in Delhi.

Though a portion of the minister’s house burnt down, the security guards and firefighters managed to control the arson and saved most parts of the minister’s house from being burnt down.

The incident took place after the burning of two more houses belonging to locals and clashes between the Rapid Action Force of Manipur and a mob in the heart of Imphal town on Thursday afternoon.

The mob which roamed the capital city on Thursday also clashed with security forces in different places.

Singh’s house was also targeted on May 25 when thousands of people attempted to assemble in front of the residence of the Central Minister in Imphal but the security forces prevented them from doing so.

Police said the mob, comprising men and women, demanded an early solution to the ethnic conflict between Meitei and Kuki communities.

The mob accused all the ministers and MLAs that they are not doing enough to end the Manipur crisis.

On Wednesday, assailants burnt the official residence of Manipur’s Industry Minister Nemcha Kipgen in the Lamphel area in Imphal West district.

The officials said that Kipgen, the lone woman minister in Manipur, was not at home when the attackers burnt down her official bungalow.