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Student leader's death cripples Manipur
August 17, 2004 17:54 IST
Manipur was crippled on Tuesday by an indefinite bandh called by the 32 organisations demanding withdrawal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act allows security forces to shoot at sight, detain and interrogate suspected terrorists.
The authorities also refused permission for a procession in Imphal with the body of student leader Pebam Chitaranjan who immolated himself.
Police raided the offices of the organisations to arrest important leaders spearheading the stir, official sources said. They added that the leaders have gone underground.
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The body of Chitaranjan, who succumbed to injuries on Monday after he set himself ablaze on August 15, was lying in the morgue after post-mortem this morning.
Representatives of various organisations met Chief Minister Ibobi Singh seeking permission to take out a procession with his body through important places in Imphal, sources said.
Singh was understood to have told the representatives that under the prevailing circumstances it was not advisable to take out a procession in the heart of the town. The procession could be taken out in the peripheral areas, he said.
But the organisations were adamant that it should be taken out in the heart of the town.
An uneasy calm prevailed as people also placed flowers and wreaths before portraits of Kangjam Memita, who died on Independence Day after being injured by a teargas shell during protests on August seven.
Markets, shops and business establishments remained closed and bus services were suspended.