Mob sets Central minister's house on fire in Imphal
Darpan News Desk IANS, 16 Jun, 2023 01:08 PM
Imphal, June 16 (IANS) Violating curfew, a mob vandalised and set ablaze Union Minister of State for External Affairs Rajkumar Ranjan Singh's house in Imphal town of Manipur, officials said on Friday.
According to police officials, a mob of 200 men and women attacked the Central Minister's residence late Thursday night. Singh, who is also the Minister of state for Education, is currently in Delhi.
Though a portion of the minister's house got burnt, the security guards and firefighters managed to control the arson and saved most parts of the minister's house from being burnt down.
The incident took place after the burning of two more houses belonging to locals and clashes between the Rapid Action Force of Manipur and a mob in the heart of Imphal town the same afternoon.
The mob which roamed the capital city also clashed with security forces in different places.
Singh's house was also targetted on May 25 when thousands of people attempted to assemble in front of the residence of the Central Minister in Imphal but the security forces prevented them from doing so.
Police said the mob, comprising men and women, demanded an early solution to the ethnic conflict between Meitei and Kuki communities.
The mob accused all the ministers and MLAs that they are not doing enough to end the Manipur crisis.
On Wednesday, assailants burnt the official residence of Manipur's Industry Minister Nemcha Kipgen in the Lamphel area in Imphal West district.
The officials said that Kipgen, the lone woman minister in Manipur, was not at home when the attackers burnt down her official bungalow.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Mohammad Zafar Iqbal (38), Noor Hussain (28), Sumit (32), Abhishek Mishra (30), Sheikh Ibrahim (28), Abhishek Gupta (35), and Mohammad Adil (32)
A Special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) Court in Jalandhar has awarded four years of rigorous imprisonment to one Mahabir Singh, a drug smuggler in Amritsar for committing the offence of money laundering. The court while awarding him a jail term also imposed a fine of Rs 20,000 on him.
One of the major challenges before the authorities is now to provide medical care to the injured persons. As per reports, over 200 persons have been seriously injured in the mishap. A 100-bed hospital and a dedicated ambulance corridor have been made ready at the SCB Medical College and Hospital.
The court sentenced P. Senthilkumar, the then CEO-cum-Chairman of Palpap Ichinichi Software International Ltd, Chennai, to five years rigorous imprisonment while T.R. Dhanasekar and R. Karunanidhi, both then Directors of SJS Network and Services Ltd, Chennai, were sentenced to three years rigorous imprisonment.
During Thursday's hearing as well, the AAP leader was produced before the Rouse Avenue Court through video conferencing after the Delhi Police's request. This was however, opposed by Sisodia and his counsel.
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Badal on Thursday advised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to avoid speaking on religious subjects of which he has neither the knowledge nor understanding.
