Human chain formed in Ranchi to protest against Manipur incident

Ranchi: Hundreds of people from the Christian community on Sunday formed a 4 km-long human chain here to protest against the incident of women being paraded naked in ethnic strife-torn Manipur.
A special prayer was also organised at St Mary’s Cathedral on Ranchi’s Purulia Road.

Braving rain, a large number of men and women came together and formed the human chain, which started from Ranchi’s Sujata Chowk and concluded near Kantatoli Chowk.

Holding posters, banners and pamphlets with messages such as save woman’, stop spreading hatred’ and give justice to Manipur’, they demanded action against those involved in the incident.

The human chain protest was organised by Jharkhand Youth Christian Association (JYCA).

“Objective behind the human chain was to request the Centre as well as the state government to bring peace in Manipur and stop the crime against women there,” JYCA president Kuldip Tirkey said.

At the St Mary’s Cathedral, bishops of churches also participated in a special prayer.

“The purpose of this gathering is to pray that peace is restored in Manipur and the wounds of the people are healed,” Ranchi Archbishop Felix Toppo said.

Tension mounted in the hills of Manipur after the May 4 video surfaced on Wednesday showing two women being paraded naked by a mob.

Till Saturday, six people allegedly involved in the incident have been arrested.

Police said all-out efforts were being made to arrest the remaining culprits by conducting raids at many suspected hideouts.

Meanwhile, women workers of the Jharkhand Congress staged protests in all five divisions of the state on Sunday.

Mahagama legislator Dipika Pandey Singh alleged that the Centre is “silent over Manipur issue”.

“The Congress party wanted a discussion on Manipur in Parliament. But, the Centre chose to remain silent. Women of the country want to know why the Centre is running away from discussion on Manipur issue,” she said.

More than 160 people have lost their lives and several others were injured since the ethnic violence broke out in Manipur on May 3 when a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ was organised in the hill districts of the northeastern state to protest against the majority Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.

Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur’s population and live mostly in the Imphal valley, while tribals, who include Nagas and Kukis, constitute 40 per cent and reside mostly in the hill districts.