Saturday, August 8, 2009

Manipur continues to agitate over 'fake' encounter

manipur

Weeks after the alleged fake encounter in which a young unarmed man was allegedly gunned down in the heart of Imphal, Manipur remains tense.

The city is paralysed under curfew and a heavy security
deployment patrols the streets.

"People have lost faith on the government and this time they want appropriate action. That's dismissal or life imprisonment so that this is not repeated again in the future," says Satyajit, a protestor.

In fact, the longest protest anywhere in the world has been going on in Manipur. From Sharmila's fast unto death against the controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Act, which is the current issue, some Manipuri women have been on a relay hunger strike for the last 240 days in support of Sharmila's cause.

But if Sharmila's cause hasn't been able to move the governments in the centre and the state its unlikely that the current agitation will be able to sustain its momentum.

People of Manipur have virtually lost faith in everything.