About 1,000 Pangal (Muslim) students in the Thoubal district have been unable to attend schools in Manipur’s Meitei (Hindu)-majority area for the last 16 days, as tensions between residents of Meitei Khangabok village and the neighbouring Pangal-dominated Sangaiyumpham remains unresolved after a man was killed on October 18.
Khangabok resident Rakesh Laishram’s killing amid stone-throwing between residents of the Khangabok and Sangaiyumpham in a playground separating the two villages on October 18 and the subsequent arson triggered tensions. Because of the tensions, thokchom Kiran, co-convener of Khangabok JAC, said their village has not stopped Pangal children from attending schools but the children have stayed away on their own like the adults. Residents have since retreated to their respective strongholds. The administration took back licensed firearms from villagers, and Central Reserve Police Force and Rapid Action Force were deployed. The two villages have since formed separate joint action committees (JACs), each with its own demands. “Pangal children are not attending classes in the schools in our village but we want to clarify that we have not stopped them. No one has anything against the children. “There is no violence in the village, which is a positive development. We are working to ensure that the children start attending schools. This is a priority for us.
Thoubal Police Superintendent M Prabhakar said there was a drunken brawl and not a communal clash and that authorities are working to ensure that children return to schools. He said the peace meeting will happen soon as everyone wants normalcy.
“There are nine schools in Khangabok where children from all communities study. We took a head count and found that nearly 1000 [Pangal] children, around 700 alone from our Sangaiyumpham village, have not been to school. He urged the government to restore normalcy so that the children can start going to schools.
