New Delhi: In response to the ongoing law and order crisis, the Manipur government on Sunday announced the extension of the mobile internet ban in the violence-hit state till November 8.
The decision was taken after a mob had on Wednesday surrounded the 1st Manipur Rifles complex, located close to Raj Bhavan and Chief Minister’s Office, demanding arms in the state capital Imphal, prompting security personnel to fire several rounds in the air.
The ban was extended following "apprehensions that anti-social elements might use social media extensively for transmission of images, hate speeches and hate video messages inciting the passions of the public which might have serious repercussions for the law and order situation in the state," reported news agency PTI.
According to the news agency, an order issued by Commissioner (Home) T Ranjit Singh, acknowledged the existence of "elements of imminent danger of loss of life and/or damage to public-private property...as a result of inflammatory material and false rumours which might be transmitted/ circulated to the public through social media...in the context of the recent incidents of violence in some parts of the state".
Tension had been on the rise in the state capital after an on-duty sub-divisional police officer was shot dead by tribal militants in Moreh town on Tuesday morning.
SDPO Chingtham Anand, a resident of Imphal, was killed in a sniper attack while he was on duty overseeing the cleaning of the grounds of Eastern Shine School for the construction of a helipad jointly by the police and BSF.
Barring a few days in September, mobile internet has remained banned in Manipur since May 3 when ethnic clashes broke out, and the government has been extending the prohibition periodically.
However, the order, for the first time, said the state government, would "go for opening of mobile towers on trial basis in those district headquarters which had not been affected by violence".
"The same, if found feasible, shall be replicated to other areas where the law and order situation has improved," the government order said.
The ethnic strife in the northeastern state has affected ten districts, reported PTI.
The state has remained gripped by recurring bouts of violence since ethnic clashes first erupted in May.
More than 180 people have been killed and several hundred injured since ethnic violence first broke out in the state on May 3 when a 'Tribal Solidarity March' was organised in the hill districts to protest against the majority Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe status.
Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur’s population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley, while tribals, which include Nagas and Kukis, constitute 40 per cent and reside mainly in the hill districts.