A high-level conference to assess the security situation in Manipur after the implementation of President’s Rule in the state was conducted by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The North Block in New Delhi served as the venue for the meeting. Senior officials from the Manipur government, top army officers, senior officials from paramilitary forces, and Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla were among those present at the meeting. Following the implementation of the President’s Rule in the state, this was Amit Shah’s first security review meeting. After N. Biren Singh resigned as chief minister, Manipur was placed under President’s control on February 13.
The state assembly has been suspended; it will remain in office until 2027. The governor issued an order on February 20 for everyone in possession of stolen or illegal weapons to surrender, which prompted the security review meeting. Since May 2023, Manipur has been embroiled in a deadly ethnic strife, and the state has seen unrest that has claimed 250 lives. A ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ was held in the hill districts in May 2023 to oppose the Meitei community’s quest for Scheduled Tribe (ST) designation, which sparked the violence.
