Situation in Kiphire and Pungro under control
Morung Express News
Dimapur | February 10
Following the violence of February 9, sporadic incidents of arson and vandalism were again reported at Shamator today. Amidst enforcement of Cr.PC 144 and heightened security, mobs continued to defy prohibitory orders indulging in a game of cat and mouse with security personnel.
While there was no report of human casualty or arrests, police sources from Shamator stated that 3 residential houses and a shop were burned, while one warehouse and pig sty were vandalised. The residents of the houses were already vacated.
As the Tuensang administration continued to keep mum, no official evaluation of the level of damage incurred in terms of property and the number of people injured could be assessed. With information from Shamator limited to police sources speaking on conditions of anonymity, this is leading to conflicting reports. Actual assessment of the number of people injured and of people affected or displaced by the violence remains unknown.
Meanwhile, one of the victims of the police firing at Shamator on February 9 was reported to have been admitted to a hospital in Dimapur. The man, though critically wounded, was responding well to treatment, police sources informed.
In Kiphire town and Pungro, there was no fresh report of violence today. The Kiphire district administration informed that the situation was under control though a sense of apprehension prevailed. Stating that it is in the process of preparing a report of the situation, it added that the report can be finalised only after corroborating facts and figures with the police.
Ministerial team postpones visit
A five member Ministerial team led by Home Minister Y Patton will be visiting Kiphire, Pungro and Shamator on February 11 to interact with civil society leaders and the public.
A press note from the Home Minister’s office informed that the team will consist of Y Patton, Home Minister; CM Chang, MLA; Naiba Konyak, Adviser & MLA; BS Nanglang, Parliamentary Secretary and Khumo, Parliamentary Secretary.
The team was scheduled to visit the areas today but could not as their helicopter could not take off due to bad weather.
The HMO assured that since the February 6 killing, the State Government “has been making all out efforts not only to arrest the culprits but also deploying additional forces to these villages to contain any possible outbreak of violence.”
The District administrations and police, it stated, “had put up all measures to contain any recurrence of such mindless mob violence, besides deploying additional forces.”
The HMO appealed to all communities to be patient and extend their cooperation to the Government and its administrations and law enforcement agencies.
Governor condemns
Nagaland State Governor, PB Acharya has condemned the killing of a couple in Kiphire on February 6 by unidentified gunmen. A press note from the OSD to the Governor said that the Governor, who is in Delhi to attend the Conference of Governors, has expressed shock and dismay at the killing. The Governor was quoted as stating that “violence has no place in a democracy and the Government would take strong measures to prevent further escalation of violence and asked to form a Peace Committee to address the problem.”
He also made fervent appeal to the peace loving citizens of the area to maintain calm and not to indulge any type of violence and help the law enforcing agencies to ensure normalcy.
