Imphal, September 18, 2009: The police firing at a speeding car at Thangal bazaar in Imphal on Thursday evening causing injuries to three of the five occupants of the car was strongly condemned by All Colleges Tribal Students Organization Manipur (ACTSOM).

The beastly acts of the police who allegedly tortured the occupants of the car, who were all students undergoing tutorial classes at one tutorial centre MECI in Imphal, even after knowing that they were injured is highly objectionable and inhuman", charged the ACTSOM on Friday.

The ACTSOM leaders stated that even while hunting animals in the jungle, a hunter never shoots before identifying which animal, whereas in the case of the Thangal bazaar shooting, the police started firing first without caring for the identity of the occupants of the car in the typical nature of Manipur police personnel of 'shoot first, and then ask questions'.

The students' body asserted that the state government should take responsibility for the treatment of the injured students as well as provide necessary compensation for the injuries and damages caused to the students as their future is uncertain in view of the injuries caused by the police firing.

The ACTSOM also demanded a white paper on the issue of regularization of ADC teachers appointed through DPC in 2006 and the notification of the government to recruit fresh teachers to replace the 835 teachers appointed in 2006. Saying that 'enough is enough' and it is more than high time to bring about solutions to the myriad problems facing the state by pursuing peaceful and democratic means instead of violent ones, the All Colleges Tribal Students Organization Manipur cautioned that if appropriate actions are not promptly taken in this regard by the government agitations of various forms would be taken up by the organization.

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