Stir as woman caught in protest miscarries
The relatives of the woman and other protestors demanded that if she is still alive, the police should hand her over along with the foetus; otherwise, they would refuse to accept the remains.
A 34-year-old woman, who suffered asphyxiation from tear gas shells fired by the police during a protest in Imphal earlier in the week, suffered a miscarriage on Saturday, officials said, with the incident triggering fresh protests in the city.
The woman, Laishram Ningol Sanjita Devi, was in the eighth month of her pregnancy, and continues to be in a critical condition at the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS), a statement from the hospital said.
The hospital further appealed to the public to not spread misinformation about the woman’s health. “She is on ventilator support, but the medication to maintain her BP has been adjusted,” the hospital said.
The body of the stillborn child has been handed over to the woman’s husband, the hospital said.
However, an irate mob deposited the body of the foetus at Singjamei Police Station, holding the police responsible for the incident. Tensions escalated outside the police station as a crowd gathered. The relatives of the woman and other protestors demanded that if she is still alive, the police should hand her over along with the foetus; otherwise, they would refuse to accept the remains.
The officer-in-charge of the police station, inspector M Conqueror Singh, received the remains from the relatives and protestors for safe custody, in the presence of an executive magistrate.
In the evening on Saturday, a mob blocked the Indo-Myanmar highway in front of Singjamei Police Station and set tires and wooden logs on fire.
Combined state and central security forces were attempting to control the crowd using tear gas and mock bombs.
The government also extended the curfew in the valley districts of Manipur by two hours. The Imphal West district magistrate issued a new order stating that the indefinite curfew would be relaxed on Sunday from 5am to 12noon.
The incident occurred on Wednesday night when security forces fired several rounds of tear gas shells, mock bombs, and live rounds to curb protests against continuous attacks on Meitei villages.
During the confrontation, the woman suffered suffocation due to smoke inhalation and was rushed to RIMS hospital for emergency treatment.
On September 1, a fresh wave of violence erupted in the state that has been roiled by ethnic violence between Meiteis and Kukis that has claimed at least 230 lives.
