Manipur Women court arrest over killings by security forces

Imphal, Aug 17 (ANI): Scores of women in Manipur on Sunday courted mass arrest over the killing of a pregnant woman and a suspected militant in a shootout on July 23.

The protestors under the aegis of Apunba Lup, the body spearheading the ongoing agitation against Indian security forces, have given a call for a 36-hour general strike, which will end on August 18.

State police faced a hard time stopping the protestors, as they fired teargas and caned the agitated women before making a formal arrest.

"The public of Manipur is outraged, that's why the situation has reached here. This was not the first time. There have been lots of cases of shooting down after arresting them from their houses. We women cannot bear any more as it has reached beyond a tolerable limit. That's why we have come out unitedly to get ourselves killed or get arrested by the police," said Chaoba Devi, a protestor.

"The imposition of curfew has hampered education totally. Meantime we are in a very unrest situation, as we are daily bread earners to sustain our livelihood. Everything has been affected since a long period." Said Ibecha Devi, another protestor.

Manipur has been on the boil since the killing of a pregnant woman and a suspected militant in a shootout on July 23 near the building of the state legislature in Imphal.

Protesters in the state are demanding stringent action against the police commandos involved in the shootout, which they have branded as a 'fake encounter'. (ANI)