'Absolutely inhuman': Union Minister RK Ranjan Singh after his Manipur house set on fire by mob

The mob managed to reach the minister's house at Kongba despite a curfew in Imphal. At the time of the incident, there were as many as nine security escorts personnel, five security guards and eight additional guards on duty at the minister's residence.

Amid continuing unrest Manipur, a mob on Thursday night (June 15) torched the residence of Union Minister of State for External Affairs RK Ranjan Singh at Kongba in Imphal. Reacting to the incident, the minister told the news agency that he was in Kerala for official work.

The union minister said that the miscreants came with petrol bombs and damage has been done to the ground floor and first floor of his house.

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Speaking to reporters on Friday, the Union minister said, "Thankfully, nobody got injured last night at my Imphal home...It is very sad to see what is happening in my home state. I will still continue to appeal for peace. Those indulging in this kind of violence are absolutely inhuman."

It is reportedly said that the mob managed to reach the minister's house at Kongba despite a curfew in Imphal. At the time of the incident, there were as many as nine security escorts personnel, five security guards and eight additional guards on duty at the minister's residence.

A security personnel at the minister's house said that the mob threw petrol bombs from all directions during the attack.

"We couldn't prevent the incident as the mob was overwhelming and we couldn't control the situation. They threw petrol bombs coming in from all directions.. from the bye lane behind the building and from the front entrance. so we simply couldn't control the mob," L Dineshwor Singh, Escort Commander, said.

The escort commander further said that around 1,200 people were part of the mob. This is the second time that the minister's house has been attacked by a mob. During the attack in May, the security personnel fired in the air to disperse the mob.

On May 3, clashes broke out in Manipur after a 'Tribal Solidarity March' was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status. The violence in Manipur was preceded by tension over the eviction of Kuki villagers from reserve forest land, which had led to a series of smaller agitations.

Meiteis are majority community in Manipur followed by tribal communities like Nagas and Kukis.

Last month, RK Ranjan Singh held a meeting with a group of intellectuals from Manipur's Meitei and Kuki communities to discuss how to bring peace in the violence-hit northeast state. The minister also wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to "identify and condemn" local politicians who could be responsible for the trouble in Manipur.