New Delhi, Nov 18, 2024, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

New Delhi, Nov 18: The prevailing situation in Manipur has made the security establishment in North Block sit up with back to back high-level review meetings for immediate restoration of peace in the troubled state.

After the Ministry of Home Affairs decided to rush around 5,000 paramilitary troops to Manipur to assist the state government in handling the "volatile" situation, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday chaired a review meeting here for the second consecutive day.

Shah directed top officials to focus on restoring law and order there as early as possible.

The northeastern state has been reeling from ethnic strife since May last year and bouts of protests and violence after the recent recovery of bodies of women and children.

Rampaging mobs torched the residences of three more BJP MLAs, one of whom is a senior minister, and a Congress MLA in different districts in Imphal Valley on Saturday night even as security forces foiled an attempt by agitators to storm the ancestral residence of Chief Minister N Biren Singh.

Tension ran high after three women and as many children were recently killed by militants in Jiribam district, where they also attacked the residences of three state ministers and six MLAs earlier on Saturday.

On November 11, Manipur Police said 10 suspected militants were killed in a fierce gunfight with security forces after insurgents in camouflage uniforms and armed with sophisticated weapons fired indiscriminately at Borobekra police station and an adjacent CRPF camp at Jakuradhor in Jiribam. Hours later, suspected militants allegedly abducted six civilians, including women and children from the same district, police said.

Concerned over the fragile situation, the Centre on Thursday reimposed the tough Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in Manipur's six police station areas, including the violence-hit Jiribam.

More than 220 people have been killed and thousands rendered homeless in ethnic violence between Imphal Valley-based Meiteis and adjoining hills-based Kuki-Zo groups since May last year.