Later Saturday night, the Mizoram government’s interior department released a statement saying that Pamra’s representatives, while regretting that their statement on Friday was misinterpreted, decided not to go ahead in order to maintain peace and tranquility in the state.
Meanwhile, two people, including a minor, were detained by Manipur police on Saturday in connection with the May 4 parade of two naked women in the state.
Mizoram tightens security, asks Meiteis not to be fooled by rumors
The Mizoram government appealed to the Meitei living in the state not to leave and guaranteed their safety amid escalating tensions. According to Lengpui airport sources, 65 people took an Indigo ATR flight from Aizawl to Imphal on Saturday. Most of them are from central institutes such as the Faculty of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry, the Regional Institute of Nursing and Paramedical Sciences, the University of Mizoram, and the Zoram Medical Faculty.
Security was tightened at several locations in Mizoram on Saturday amid fears of backlash over the May 4 nudity video and parade, even as the government said a former insurgent group’s statement about Meiteis had been misinterpreted.
“The deployment was made in anticipation of a possible development of tension that could threaten the safety of the Meitei living in Aizawl due to public outrage against the recent viral video (of two women parading naked in Manipur),” said DIG (Northern Range) Lallianmawia.
Mizoram household commissioner Pu H Lalengmowia held a meeting with representatives of PAMRA (Multinational Peace Agreement Force Returnees Association) at his office on Saturday, where PAMRA clarified that his statement was “a notice requesting the Meitei living in Mizoram to be careful in light of public sentiments regarding the ongoing ethnic conflict in Manipur, and was not a diktat or notice of resignation to them,” the state’s interior department said. . The PAMRA representatives, he said, had decided not to proceed in order to maintain peace and quiet.
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Despite the Mizoram government’s assurances and requests not to leave the state, 65 people took an Indigo ATR flight from Aizawl to Imphal from Lengpui Airport. Most of them are from core institutions such as the Faculty of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry, the Regional Institute of Nursing and Paramedical Sciences (RIPANS), the University of Mizoram, and the Zoram Medical Faculty.
Many others are believed to have embarked on their road trip since Friday night seeking safety.
The household commissioner also met separately with the representatives of the All Mizoram Manipuri Association to assure them of their safety and told them not to be fooled by rumors.
Mizo students at RIMS, Imphal and other institutions plan to leave Imphal for Aizawl. There are around 200 Mizo students pursuing higher studies in Manipur, all of whom were evacuated in the aftermath of ethnic violence that began on May 3. However, some, who have essential tasks to complete, returned to Imphal.
Most of the Meteis in Mizoram are from Assam. The sources said Manipuri living in Mizoram started leaving the state on Saturday morning for areas in Assam’s Barak Valley via NH 306, which connects Aizawl to Silchar, following PAMRA’s declaration.
“We have come to understand that people belonging to both Meiteis and Pangals (Muslims of Manipuri), who have been living in Aizawl and other parts of Mizoram, have started leaving the state around 10am on Saturday out of fear. Many of them have already reached the Cachar district of Assam. We have urged the Assam government, and the Cachar district administration in particular, to make arrangements for their shelter,” said Nanda Babu Singh, an official with Save Manipuri (Manipuri Kanba Lup), an umbrella organization of 15 Assam Meitei corps. She told TOI on Saturday that although they have urged the Assam government to take care of fleeing Mizoram Manipuri community members, meiteis in the Barak Valley have offered to provide accommodation.
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“The Meiteis living in Mizoram are mostly from the Barak Valley and a few are from Manipur. Those from Barak Valley will go home and those from Manipur will have to stay in Silchar and other areas for longer because using NH 37, which connects Silchar to Imphal via Jiribam, remains unsafe for Meiteis. On the other hand, many cannot afford to travel by air. Therefore, the Assam government must arrange relief camps for them,” said the Save Manipuri official, who retired as a senior Assam administration official.
The sources said that Meitei organizations have dealt with those fleeing from Mizoram as soon as they reach Cachar.
In Manipur, authorities said security forces carried out search operations in vulnerable and slum areas of the valley and hill districts, leading to the destruction of nine bunkers and camps atop Phaileng Hill in Kangpokpi district on Friday.
“A total of 126 nakas and checkpoints have been set up in different districts both on the hill and in the valley and 413 people have been detained by police in connection with rapes,” Manipur police tweeted.
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