“Officials in the unruly state of Manipur have re-imposed an internet ban following violent protests that erupted after the circulation of images of two deceased students murdered during the months-long conflict.”
India resumes internet ban in Manipur: Since armed conflicts between the primarily Christian Kuki community and the generally Hindu Meitei majority began in May, more than 150 people have died in the isolated northeast state.
The remote state has become divided along racial lines, and competing militia groups have erected barricades.
After dozens were hurt during violent protests in the state capital of Imphal, a nearly five-month internet ban that had been eased last week was reinstated late Tuesday.
Following the posting of images of two dead bodies, a 17-year-old lady and a 20-year-old man from the Meitei group, on social media, police opened fire with tear gas on hundreds of outraged students on Tuesday, according to local media. In July, the two went missing.
According to a government order, they shut down the internet to prevent the “spread of misinformation, false rumors, and other forms of violent activities through social media platforms.”
The state’s chief minister, Biren Singh, announced late on Tuesday that police were looking into the killings.
For failing to put a halt to the violence in the state, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) administration has come under fire.
Human Rights Watch has accused the Manipur government of fueling the conflict through “divisive policies that promote Hindu majoritarianism.”
However, In a post on X on Wednesday, Mallikarjun Kharge, the leader of the opposition Congress party, charged the incumbent government for turning Manipur “into a battlefield”.