Normal life was disrupted in Imphal on Tuesday due to a 24-hour shutdown which was imposed demanding justice for a medical student who died in Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS). The strike commenced from Monday at 6 pm and ended on Tuesday at 6 pm.
The shutdown imposed by Justice for Sanaton Athokpam (MBBS student at RIMS) got the support of various civil society organisations including students’ bodies.
The MBBS fifth semester student was allegedly found hanging inside his room in RIMS hostel on March 15 last with both hands tied on the back and bruise marks on his body.
Justice for Sanaton Athokpam, a committee formed in connection with the controversial death of the student, has been pressing the state government to investigate into the death of the student by lodging an FIR case and delivering justice to the family of the victim. The committee has been resorting to a series of agitations as the state government has failed to address its demands except the ordering of a magisterial enquiry. The term of the magisterial enquiry was also completed on April 16. However, the report is yet to come out.
In Imphal, shops and other commercial establishments were shut and public and private transport was off the road. Attendance in government offices and banks was also thin, reports said. During the day, protesters blocked roads by erecting bamboo poles and piling logs and burning debris on the roads at several places. However, there was no untoward incident related to the strike.
In the Khurai area where the deceased medical student hailed from, a large number of strike supporters came out on the roads and blocked the traffic. Police had a hard time dealing with the protesters.
Also read: Controversial death of medical student at RIMS hostel triggers protest
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