The Union government has ordered the deployment of 50 additional Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) companies, comprising over 5,000 personnel, to Manipur, in response to the state’s deteriorating security and law and order situation, official sources said on Monday, as per news agency PTI. The move follows an earlier deployment of 20 CAPF companies, including 15 from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and five from the Border Security Force (BSF), sent to the state on November 12 after violence erupted in Jiribam and spread to other regions.

Of the newly ordered reinforcements, 35 units will be drawn from the CRPF and the remaining from the BSF. CRPF Director General A D Singh and senior officers from other CAPFs are currently stationed in the conflict-ridden state. According to official sources cited by PTI, “A deployment plan is being drawn to base these new 50 units in Manipur as per the violence levels being reported and the dynamic law and order situation in consultation with the state government and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).”

With last week’s reinforcements, Manipur now has 218 CAPF companies on the ground. The state has faced ethnic strife since May 2023, leading to the deaths of over 220 people and displacing thousands. The violence largely stems from clashes between Imphal Valley-based Meiteis and neighbouring hill-based Kuki-Zo groups.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is set to hold a crucial meeting on Monday to review the security situation and strategise on managing the escalating violence. The MHA reiterated on Saturday that all security forces in Manipur have been instructed to restore peace and order. It added that “strict action would be initiated against anyone trying to indulge in violent and disruptive activities.” The ministry also highlighted that armed miscreants from both communities have caused loss of life and disrupted public order.

In response to the fragile situation, the Centre reimposed the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) in six police station areas, including violence-hit Jiribam, on Thursday. 

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Manipur Violence: NIA Lodges FIR, Begins Probe Into 3 Cases — Report

In a related development, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken over three cases initially registered by the Manipur Police. These cases include the murder of a woman by armed militants in Jiribam on November 8, an attack on a CRPF post in Jakuradhor Karong and Borobekra police stations on November 11, and the arson and killing of a civilian in Borobekra, also on November 11. The NIA registered the cases on November 13 and has commenced investigations, according to official sources cited by PTI.

Tensions escalated further over the weekend, with mobs setting fire to the residences of three BJP legislators, including a senior minister, and a Congress MLA in various districts of Imphal Valley. Security forces also thwarted an attempt by agitators to storm the ancestral residence of Chief Minister N Biren Singh. On November 11, Manipur Police reported that security forces killed 10 suspected militants after a fierce gunfight at Borobekra, where insurgents dressed in camouflage fired on Borobekra police station and an adjacent CRPF camp in Jakuradhor. The police also reported that six civilians, including women and children, were abducted from the same district hours later.

The unrest in Manipur began after a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status. Even Jiribam, an ethnically diverse region that had largely remained unaffected, saw violence in June when the mutilated body of a farmer was found in a field.