Imphal, Aug 11 : The state home department is facing a difficult situation in organising the security arrangements following the sudden public agitations in the wake of the BT Road mayhem involving police commandos, as well as a series of agitations announced by various tribal bodies in the hill districts to protest a recent Cabinet decision on deployment of police commandos and IRB in the hill districts.
In view of the existing law and order situation in the valley districts, mainly greater Imphal areas, and the upcoming state government observation of Patriots’ Day on August 13 and an expected general strike by underground organisations of the Independence Day on August 15, the state government has been compelld to recall a large number of state forces deployed in different parts of the state to concentrate in the valley districts.
According to a highly placed official source, civil police, police commandos, MR, IRB, and Central para military forces have been recalled from the other districts of the state and deployed in the entire greater Imphal area since yesterday. Security has also been concentrated in and around the chief minister’s bungalow, Raj Bhavan and major government departments from this evening in view of the proposed mass rally planned to be taken out by the Apunba Lup tomorrow in Imphal to protest the recent alleged fake encounter at BT Road in Imphal on July 23.
The source further said that adequate security deployment in and around the greater Imphal areas consisting of rapid strike commando forces and other Central para military forces have been completed to prevent any untoward incidents tomorrow during the rally.
The official source also mentioned that strike police commando mobile teams have been sent out to the peripheries of greater Imphal area to prevent any public gatherings. The precautionary measures taken from this morning would continue tomorrow when regular patrolling in every part of greater Imphal area would take place to foil the rally, the source added.
Meanwhile, even as the security appratus is stretched to the limit in trying to control the situation in the valley districts over the Tehelka exposure episode, the upcoming mass public rally called by eight different student bodies of the hill ditricts on August 11 is expected to cause serious problems for the authorities as most of the state’s security has been recalled from the other parts of the state to meet the requirements in the greater Imphal area. The rally on August 11 is to be held at all the district headquarters of the hill districts to protest against the recent Cabinet move for deployment of state police commandos and IRB in all the hill districts of the state.