Pioneer In Short

Manipur: Thousands stage sound protest

Thousands of people across Manipur’s five valley districts staged a “sound protest” on Friday evening against continued killings, the prolonged ethnic conflict and the government’s alleged failure to restore normalcy. In Imphal, protesters banged utensils, beat drums, struck electric poles with hammers and honked vehicle horns between 7.30 pm and 8 pm, responding to a call by the Federation of Haomee, a civil society organisation. “We are making these sounds to make the leaders hear our pain,” a protester said, alleging that the authorities had ignored their demands for too long. Demonstrators marched towards Kangla, the historic political and cultural centre of the erstwhile Manipur kingdom, near Lok Bhavan and the chief minister’s secretariat. Security forces stopped protesters at Palace Compound, Moirangkhom and Keisampat junctions. Hundreds reached the Kangla gate but were prevented from entering the fort premises.

Police later fired several rounds of tear gas shells to disperse protesters gathered near Lok Bhavan and erected barricades in the area after 8 pm. No injuries or violence were reported. The demonstration aimed to draw the government’s attention to the continuing conflict and demands for restoration of peace.

Anti-SIR protests to Spread Across Cities

More than 100 protesters were detained in New Delhi on Friday as thousands of people, including farmers’ groups, trade unions, student organisations and Left parties, marched towards the Election Commission of India (ECI) headquarters, demanding the withdrawal of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar. The protesters, carrying the national flag and banners reading “Scrap SIR” and “Vote Chori”, tried to breach multi-layered police barricades near Bangla Sahib Gurdwara. Police stopped them from proceeding towards the ECI headquarters, following which demonstrators held a “People’s Parliament”. The march, organised by the Delhi Coordination Committee of People Against SIR, drew participants from Delhi, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh. Several students were bundled into buses. Organisers said demonstrations were planned in 88 cities across 18 states, involving 145 organisations, with programmes scheduled through November 1, particularly in marginalised communities, and demanded the restoration of deleted names and greater transparency. Farmers’ leader Yudhvir Singh reiterated the demand for Kumar’s resignation, while CPI leader P Sandosh Kumar warned that the agitation would intensify.