Pangei Blast: Sit-in, rally staged
Source: Hueiyen News Service

Imphal, March 18 2012: Decrying the bomb blast at a house in Pangei near the gate of Manipur Police Training School (MPTS) on March 15 which claimed the life of a minor girl and left five other members of a family including a mother and her three daughters seriously injured, a public rally and a sit in protest was carried out at Pangei area today.

Hundreds of people participated in the protest rally which was organized jointly by Pangei Yangdong Women Welfare Association, Pangei Yangdong Youth Development Association, Women Action for Development (WAD), North East Dialogue Forum, Life Care Foundation, Conflict Widows Forum and Social Action Development Organisation.

Womenfolk participating in protest rally taken out at Pangei over the March 15 bomb blast

Carrying placards and festoons which read, "Do not harm others", "We want CBI to investigate into Pangei blast", "Stop terrorizing innocent people by both state and non State actors" and "Take stern action against mastermind of the bomb blast" etc, the protestors walked through Pangei Bazar area before converging at Pangei Bazar to stage a sit-in demonstration and hold public meeting.

Talking to mediapersons on the sidelines of the sit-in protest, Sobita Mangsatabam, Secretary Women Action for Development, denounced triggering of the bomb blast inside the house inhabited mostly by women as an inhuman act.

Such act of violence against women, girls and children in particular and human mankind in general is highly objectionable.

She also appealed to the authority concerned for taking up necessary measures for investigating into the incident and book the culprits as well as to check proliferation of arms and ammunitions to avoid such unwanted incidents in future.

At the public meeting a number of resolutions were adopted.

These include to stop war crime and crime against women, to investigate into proliferation of bombs in and around Pangei by the authority of Manipur Police Training School should and to ensure protection of women and children in the state by the government.

The meeting also demanded the government not to negotiate with compensation, initiate criminal investigation into all the incidents of bomb blasts and killings of innocent people and pay urgent attention to the victims of Pangei blast and provide necessary rehabilitation.

The meeting also called upon both the state and non- state armed actors to stop targeting innocent people in general and women and children in particular.