IMPHAL: In the midst of the massive surrender of firearms by village volunteers in manipur devastated by conflicts, unidentified militants opened fire on Friday in a MEITEI RELIGIOUS SITE in Imphal this CONTIGUAS DISTRICT, the authorities said. However, no victims were reported in the incident.
The incident took place around 9.30 am when a group of devotees, under strong security coverage, visited Kongba MaruA sacred site for Meiteis, to offer sentences, they said.
A total of seven rounds were fired from adjacent hills, but no person was injured in the incident, officials said, added that additional security forces have been sent to the place.
After the trigger incident, the Iracos premises of the nearby villages took to the streets and blocked the vehicular traffic to register their protest.
Kongba Maru had previously witnessed the vandalism of the temple properties for criminals supposedly of the adjacent areas of the Kangpokpi district hill.
Early in the day, Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla extended the deadline for the surrender of looted and illegal firearms until 4 pm on March 6 after the demands of people from the areas of Hill and Valley for additional time, said an official statement.
On February 20, Bhalla had urged groups to voluntarily deliver the stolen weapons of security forces and other firearms illegally in seven days, whose deadline ended Thursday.
During the seven -day period, the public delivered more than 300 firearms, mainly in the Valley districts.
More than 250 people have been killed and thousands of homeless people in ethnic violence between the Meiteis and Kuki-zo groups since May 2023.
The center had imposed the president’s rule on February 13 after Prime Minister N Bire Singh resigned. The State Assembly, which has a possession until 2027, has been placed in suspended animation.