Tense standoff at Yaingangpokpi as IDPs clash with security forces; journalist injured

A volatile confrontation erupted at Yaingangpokpi today after internally displaced persons trying to return to their homes in Gwaltabi were blocked by state and central security forces. The situation rapidly escalated, with injuries to IMPACT TV journalist P. Bobo and an Imphal East CDO personnel, while tension continued to rise on both sides of the region. Condition of both the journalist and the police personnel is stable.
IDPs from the Sawombung Relief Camp started marching towards Gwaltabi early in the morning, proclaiming that if Manipur was peaceful enough to host the Sangai Festival, then their rehabilitation should no longer be delayed. They demanded immediate permission to return to their abandoned homes, stating that prolonged displacement had become unbearable.
However, the security forces intercepted the group at Yaingangpokpi, triggering a heated standoff. As IDPs pushed forward, police fired mock bombs and tear gas shells to disperse the crowd. The sudden escalation caused panic, leading to injuries and heightening the already fraught atmosphere.
At the same time, a large presence of Kuki community members was reported to have congregated in and around the Gwaltabi area, thus making the atmosphere unusually sensitive and fraught with apprehension of a communal flashpoint. The presence of both groups at the same time greatly heightened the tension on the ground.
The residents of Gwaltabi wondered why, if security was assured, IDPs were still not being allowed to return. “If going back is still unsafe, what exactly is the threat?” they asked, exasperated by the delay in the restoration of normalcy.
At the same time, IDPs accused the authorities of selectively preventing them from returning home. “If the land truly belongs to us, we must be allowed to reclaim it. We cannot remain displaced forever,” said a representative of IDPs during the protest.
Earlier in the day, some residents from the Kuki community in nearby Dolaithabi were also reported to be moving out. In this rapidly evolving situation, another layer of tension was thereby added.
The displaced villagers, however, defied the blockade by security personnel and staged a sit-in protest near the barricade at Yaingangpokpi, refusing to retreat. The IDPs refused to budge from their demand for returning to Gwaltabi even as police continued a tight cordon, citing law and order concerns.
The standoff remained unresolved till late evening, with the atmosphere in the region turning increasingly volatile.