Manipur activists hurl shoes at CM's residence

IMPHAL: Activists of Apunba Lup (AL) on Wednesday hurled shoes at the private residence of Manipur Minister for Sports N Biren at Luwangsangbam in protest against the death of a youth in an alleged fake encounter in July.

The activists broke open the gate of Biren's residence, hurled shoes and pelted stones around 1:30 pm, officials said. The AL members had been agitating for the past two months demanding resignation of Chief Minister O Ibobi Singh in connection with the death of a youth in the alleged encounter on July 23.

They had also been targetting the houses of ministers to press for their demands which includes dismissal of police commandos involved in the incident and action against senior police officers on charges of cover-up.

The agitation began after a Delhi-based news magazine published photographs of the encounter in which a 27-year-old Chungkham Sanjit was killed by police commandos at Imphal market complex. A pregnant woman was also killed and five others were injured by stray bullets.

The members have been organising sit-in protests, torch rallies and burning effigies of chief minister and senior police officers as part of their agitation.

The organisation said they would continue their agitation till the chief minister tenders his resignation on moral grounds and their other demands were fulfilled.

Meanwhile, All Manipur Students Union and Manipur Students Front have also joined the AL in its protest and boycotted classes in educational institutions.