A woman was shot dead outside a school in Manipur's Imphal West district by unidentified assailants, the police said on Thursday. She was in her early 50s.
The incident comes a day after schools reopened two months after ethnic violence broke out in the state.
Police said the incident took place at around 8:40 am near Sishu Nistha Niketan School. The woman’s body has been sent for post-mortem.
While the woman’s identity is yet to be established officially, the Churachandpur-based Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum claimed that she belonged to a Zo-Kuki community. The forum identified her as Dongaiching, a woman who lived on a church campus in the Lamphel area of Imphal East district.
Schools were shut for over two months in view of the ongoing ethnic violence in Manipur.
Manipur chief minister N Biren Singh on Monday announced that schools would reopen from July 5 for up to Class 8, except 96 schools in the worst-affected areas. Students from Classes 9 to 12 can return once the construction of prefabricated houses is completed and displaced people taking shelters at different relief camps are relocated, Singh announced.
The northeastern state has been witnessing ethnic clashes between the tribal communities – Meitei and Kuki – which have claimed at least 122 lives so far, injured over 300 and displaced around 50,000.
The Manipur government imposed an internet ban on May 3 to enforce an attempt to prevent the proliferation of hate speech, inflammatory images, and video messages that could potentially incite further unrest.
A further five-day ban extension was announced across the state until July 10th.
As reported by Reuters, the unrest in the state began on May 3rd, when ethnic majority Meitei clashed with the hill tribal groups, over economic perks and quotas in government positions and educational institutions offered to the tribes. Separately, the Manipur state government initiated an eviction drive in February to evict tribal tribes from forests in the hills, claiming they had encroached on government land, creating outrage among tribal people who were being forced to leave their homes.
Manipur has a long history of political unrest, with various armed insurgent groups operating in the region. Amidst this backdrop, women have played a significant role in voicing their concerns and demanding change. Throughout the years, they have actively participated in protests, marches, and strikes, becoming a driving force for political mobilisation.
Suggested Reading: Women At Heart Of Manipur Stir: Unveiling Historic Role In Political Agitation
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