Row over NSU site turns ugly, five hurt
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, January 29 2021: The imbroglio over the ownership of the National Sports University site took an ugly turn today as violence at the site left at least 5 persons including police personnel and women were injured.

The five persons including Lamphel SDPO (Sub Divisional Police Officer) were hurt in a scuffle that broke out when police attempted to stop a mob from destroying construction equipment at the NSU site.

Sources said about 40-50 people reportedly approached the construction site and torched three worksheds and broke the glasses of one JCB vehicle and a car.

When police tried to stop the mob from further damaging the construction equipment, a scuffle broke out which left at least 5 five persons injured.

Later, a large number of people from Senjam Chirang reached the site and protested the incident.

However, police were able to control the protesting crowd from causing further unwanted incidents, added the sources.

Meanwhile, the National Sports University Haoraothel Protection Committee has strongly condemned the burning of three worksheds and the act of damaging a JCB vehicle.

In a statement, the committee accused the Konsakhul village of trying to derail the construction of the NSU.

"The objective of the Konsakhul village is clear and that is that they do not want the NSU to be established.

If they had really wanted the NSU then they could have gone to the Court without resorting to violence," it said.

The committee along with three other villages have been repeatedly appealing the Konsakhul village to take their ownership claim over the NSU site to the Court.

Disrupting the construction work and damaging NSU properties is against the interest of the State.

Such violence has put Manipur in shame before other States, it said.

In today's incident, a bullet had hit the NSU office.

The Government should look into this, it said, further asserting that no action has been taken up in the previous incident where a water supply plant was burnt.

Accusing the police of treating them differently, it also alleged that the police had last year damaged several vehicles.

It also noted that State police should not be deployed if it is not capable of protecting the site.

The locals and the committee are ready to replace the police for guarding the site, said the committee.

Further, Konsakhul village should go to the Court instead of agitating and it should bear responsibility for the damages today, it added.

Different claims have been dogging the NSU site.

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