Imphal: A labourer was killed and four others injured when suspected militants triggered a powerful IED at a community hall where the labourers stay in Manipur’s Thoubal district in the wee hours of Monday. The bomb exploded inside a makeshift camp at a corner of the community at Khongjom Sapam Mayai Leikai under Khongjom police station of Thoubal district housing the labourers at 1.10 am, police said.
The injured four labourers were admitted at Thoubal district hospital.
They were labourers of Koya and GCKC engaged in the construction of a water tank there, police also said.
The deceased was identified as Pankaj Mahato. He succumbed to his injuries at Thoubal district hospital where he was evacuated along with the four other injured labourers.
The injured labourers were identified as Aroop Mandal, Souvik Patra, Aporva Mandal (25) and Rajesh Ramaanik (19). Most of them are believed to be from West Bengal.
They were later referred to JNIMS in Imphal, police also said.
The miscreants suspected to be militants triggered the powerful bomb while the labourers were asleep.
The police are yet to ascertain if any of the armed insurgent groups operating in the state was behind the blast. They have initiated an investigation after registering a case.
Meanwhile, Manipur chief minister N Biren Singh has expressed strong condemnation to the killing and injuring of labourers engaged in the developmental project.
Responding to a query from the reporters at a press conference held at chief minister’s secretariat, Biren Singh said that the bomb attack targeting the labourers would not be the handiwork of patriots.
“I strongly condemn such a cowardly act of planting and killing innocent labourers. What is the use of targeting them? They come here to earn their livelihood and nothing else,” he said. The chief minister then said that the perpetrators will be booked at the earliest.
NNN
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