100 Hour Bandh Call by AMSU Harasses People in Manipur

The recent Manipur 100 hour bandh imposed on the Manipur state by the All Manipur Students’ Union (Amsu) that was practised along the National Highway 37 left the state in a total cut-off condition from its neighbouring states. Imphal remained disconnected from Silchar during the road blockade of the Imphal-Jiribam road and this certainly has hampered the state.

AMSU had called for the bandh as an attempt to flush out NSCN (Isak-Muivah) camps from Manipur. Notably, the self- identified members of NSCN-IM had assaulted the members of AMSU at Nungba physically. The outcome was that the bandh practised since Saturday midnight stranded hundreds of vehicles at both ends of the Imphal-Jiribam road. President of AMSU district Committee, Jiribam, Yurembam Sanjiv Singh had also told the public that one must not to use any means of transport during the blockade. He even added that in case of any failure in doing so; the person who breaks the norms will have to bear individual responsibility.

Manjit Sarangthem, the president of the students’ union, said, “We have our volunteers blocking traffic along the highway at Cotland, Keithelmanbi, Khumbong, Lakhipur, Gulathor and Babupara. Transport in connections with religious activities and medical care are exempted. Our volunteers will not damage any vehicle or harass anyone on the highway.”

Sarangthem further added, “Four cadres, including two masked men, slapped our secretary general and extorted Rs 5,000 from them, alleging that the team was travelling in the ‘Nagaland area’, which in fact was in Manipur.”

The incident has enraged the students union so much so that they are desperate to flush out the NSCN-IM members from the state. He reiterated that if the cadres involved in the incident are not arrested within this 100-hour blockade then they will make their protest even stronger. Criticizing the government, he said as to why cannot the state arrest the culprits who harassed the members