Manipur: On Friday night, armed men fired shots and set ablaze an abandoned house in Lalpani village, escalating tensions in Jiribam, Manipur. This incident occurred within 24 hours after the Meitei and Hmar communities had reached a peace agreement aimed at restoring normalcy in the area.

“It is an isolated settlement consisting of few Meitei houses, and most of those were abandoned after violence broke out in the district. Miscreants, who are yet to be identified, took advantage of security lapses in the area to commit the arson,” an official said.

The agreement was forged during a meeting held on Thursday at a CRPF facility in Assam’s Cachar. The meeting was facilitated by the Jiribam district administration, Assam Rifles, and CRPF personnel, and included representatives from the Thadou, Paite, and Mizo communities.

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The agreement called for both sides to make concerted efforts to prevent further violence. It also emphasized the need for cooperation with security forces and maintaining controlled and coordinated movements in the district.

However, on Friday night, the violence continued when armed men torched an abandoned house in Lalpani, an area with few remaining Meitei houses. Most of these homes had been left empty following previous violence. The attackers took advantage of lapses in security to carry out the arson.

A follow-up meeting is scheduled for August 15 to further discuss and implement measures for restoring peace.

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Since May of last year, ethnic violence between the Imphal Valley-based Meiteis and the Kuki-Zo groups from the hills has resulted in over 200 deaths and displaced thousands.

Jiribam, which had previously been relatively unaffected by the violence, saw unrest after a mutilated farmer’s body was found in June. This led to widespread displacement and destruction, including incidents of arson by both sides. A CRPF jawan was also killed in a militant ambush in mid-July.