Manipur ethnic strife: Two abandoned houses torched

Imphal: Two abandoned houses belonging to a particular community were set on fire by unidentified people in Manipur's Imphal West district early on Wednesday, an official said.

Fire tenders were rushed to the spot in Langol area and the blaze was doused, he said, adding that no injuries were reported in the incident.

The incident took place during a time gap between change of guards in the area, he said.

The houses were being guarded by army personnel since those were abandoned by the residents and CRPF personnel were to take over the security of the houses, the official said.

The miscreants torched the houses as the army personnel were moving out and the CRPF personnel were moving in, he said.

More than 160 people lost their lives and several hundreds were injured since the ethnic clashes broke out in Manipur on May 3, after a 'Tribal Solidarity March' was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.

Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur's population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley. Tribals -- Nagas and Kukis -- constitute little over 40 per cent and reside in the hill districts.