Manipur braces for more suspense with only two days left before the second phase of voting for Lok Sabha Elections in Outer Manipur. Late Tuesday night, three medium-intensity explosions damaged a bridge in Kangpokpi district disrupting traffic along the vital National Highway-2, which provides passage from Imphal to Dimapur in Nagaland.
The blasts caused no bodily harm or fatalities but serve as a stark reminder of potential disruptions along this crucial route. The explosions took place near Sapormeina in the Kangpokpi district around 1:15 am, according to local security officials. To date, unidentified groups remain responsible for these actions – triggering an ongoing investigation and impacting local commuting significantly.
In anticipation of more incidents like this one, security forces maintain heightened presence around strategic areas while thorough checks are taking place across surrounding regions and bridges.
This is not the first incident punctuating election time tensions; it follows on heels of first polling phase marred by outbreaks of gunfire and destruction alleged during April 19 elections concerning Inner Manipur constituency parts.
Concerns culminated when people had to vote again across 11 polling stations within the affected areas on April 22nd after reports suggested possible booth capturing instances while highlighting aggressive mob behaviour toward electronic voting machines (EVMs) & voter-verifiable paper audit trails (VVPATs).
Adding gravitas to such claims was a letter to Election Commission by Joint Chief Electoral Officer Ramananda Nongmeikapam reporting massive disruptions during initial rounds – including brazen shooting at an elderly man causing him injuries specifically mentioned being perpetrated in certain disrupt prone regions over past weeks.
Even as these claim remained under investigation, news agency PTI recently reported fresh incidents featuring firing amidst villagers descending from hills within Kangpookpi district transforming nearby villages Awang Sekmai and Luwangsangol into uninformed battlegrounds.
As Manipur navigates this difficult path with extensive security measures underway to ensure peaceful polling, all eyes remain on state officials trusted to deliver free, fair manipuri polls amidst these pressing socio-political disturbances.