User:Sailingsmooth5/Moreh Killings

The Moreh Killings were _ in June of 2007

http://e-pao.net/epPageExtractor.asp?src=related_news.timeline_of_Moreh_Killings_2007.html.. all sources used

Timeline June 3-6: Killing of Roshan, Moreh Bandh A civilian named Yumnam Roshan Meitei was shot dead by suspected Kuki armed cadres at the Moreh border town of Manipur. Enraged by the killing, many civil society organizations imposed an indefinite bandh and curfew. The body of the deceased was kept at the Moreh police station as the family members refused to take it back. The bandh was relaxed for essential services only.

The organizations that imposed the bandh demanded the booking of the murderers by the government and the removal of the 24 Assam Rifles from Moreh. The 24 Assam Rifles was accused of past inaction against Kuki militants, who were noted to have not taken any action against previous killings of Moreh residents by Kuki militants. For example, Chandel district AMSU president Sunil Agarwal was killed in 2006, yet little action was taken in his case. A manhunt for the killer of Roshan was not launched by the 24th Assam Rifles.

This inaction led to allegations that the Assam Rifles were trying to fuel communal trouble for illicit gain, an allegation made by the Meetei Council of Moreh (MCM), UNLF, and All Manipur United Clubs' Organisation (AMUCO). MCM leaders demanded a removal of the communally inclined AR.

A Joint Action Committee (JAC) Against the Killing of Yumnam Roshan Meitei was formed, and two women leaders were appointed as the joint convenors of the JAC. The two leaders stated that they would continue their protest until their demands were met. The ADC of Moreh issued prohibitory orders and clamped curfew to pre-empt any further trouble.

Meetei Council representatives had blamed the Assam Rifles for the increase in such killings and demanded the withdrawal of the "communally inclined" troops. They had warned that if any undesirable incidents occurred during the interregnum, the Chief Minister should be held responsible.

The Kuki National Organization, the political head of the KNA, confirmed responsibility for the attack. According to T Stephen Kuki, a KNO official, Roshan 'was given capital punishment not because of disrespect to his community or his organization, but because of his personal activities which on thorough investigation was found to be creating barriers and misunderstanding among the different communities in Moreh', and further claimed that 'He was not a civilian but a member of a particular insurgent group'. The organization appealed to the public to not take the matter as a communal attack.

On June 4, representatives of the Meitei Council Moreh (MCM) met with Chief Minister O Ibobi and demanded the shifting of the Assam Rifles post from Moreh. However, a clash soon occurred when the AR troops attempted to arrest a man, Koijam Sushil, which led to a physical attack from nearby meira paibis. The AR men fired into the air and beat those near the confrontation, seriously injuring three meira paibis. The ADC of Moreh convened a meeting with members of the JAC, but it ended in a fiasco when the Deputy Inspector General questioned why so much controversy was being raised over the killing of a person at Moreh while killing is a daily affair in Manipur.

By June 5, normal life in Moreh remained paralyzed as the Bandh continued. The 24 Assam Rifles continued to stay inactive despite given a list of the suspects in the Roshan case. MCM president L Imobi informed the press that the number of Meiteis killed by Kuki underground activists over the past year including Roshan had risen to 13.

The bandh was eventually called off on June 6th after 2 companies of the IRB were stationed in Moreh, and a MoU was signed between the JAC and regional representatives.