Police dispersed a torch rally in Manipur’s Kakching district on Sunday night after tensions escalated during a protest against the proposed census exercise and in support of implementing the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
The protesters, marching under the banner of the Campaign for Just and Fair Delimitation, raised slogans such as “No NRC, No Census” and demanded that the census be deferred until internally displaced persons were resettled. The rally began from the Wabagai-Hiyanglam Lamkhai Keithel area and attempted to proceed towards the district headquarters.
Police intercepted the protesters at Keirak Dam, where the situation turned tense and violence broke out. Police fired tear gas shells to disperse the crowd and detained at least seven protesters, including four women, who were later released.
The campaign has been organising torch rallies across Manipur and has announced further agitation, including a general strike from midnight on August 31 if the Centre does not issue an official statement on deferring the Census. The protesters have demanded that issues concerning displaced people, demographic changes and delimitation be addressed before the census exercise is undertaken.
