Guwahati: The killing of Manipur’s top church leader, Rev V Sitlhou, along with two other church leaders on Wednesday in Kangpokpi district is being seen as a potential turning point in the Centre’s push to restore order in the violence-torn state.A top security source said the central govt is already in the process of pulling all strings to stabilise Manipur by year-end, ahead of assembly elections scheduled for March next year.“There is urgent necessity to establish the rule of law and end the gun culture in Manipur,” the source said, hinting at some hard hitting decisions by the Centre to go for massive deployment of CRPF, drawn from Chhattisgarh, where the anti-Naxal operations are drawing to a close.According to the source, five battalions of the force’s elite CoBRA commandos are expected to arrive in Manipur soon, equipped with advanced drones similar to those used in Chhattisgarh to neutralise Maoist strongholds.“These Cobra commandos are specially trained in guerrilla warfare and will be deployed in both valley and the hills,” the source saidMoreover, at least 40 of the CRPF’s lethal all-terrain light bulletproof vehicles (LBPV), nicknamed the Marksman, and used extensively in anti-Naxal operations, have already reached Imphal after their duty in West Bengal polls.These vehicles are agile, can withstand IED blasts, each having capacity to carry up to six personnel. “These vehicles will give the force the much-needed edge in Manipur’s difficult terrain,” the source added.In addition, the drones used by the CRPF are highly sophisticated. One version has range of 10 km and the other version 30 km.“At the moment, the hotspots in Manipur are at Litan of Ukrhul district, pockets in Imphal East district and Saikul in Kangpokpi district and Sugnu, Dongyang and Lailoiphai areas in Churachandpur district and the border town of Moreh in Tengnoupal district,” the source said.Over 200 companies of CRPF are deployed in Manipur primarily for maintaining the buffer zones that restrict movement between the hills and the valley, a measure aimed at preventing further clashes between communities.The unrest, now in its third year, has left Manipur deeply unsettled, with cycles of retaliatory violence between Kuki-Zo, Tangkhul Naga and Meitei groups. The Centre’s strategy appears to be a mix of heavy security reinforcement and political urgency, with the goal of restoring law and order before the state heads into elections.
