Manipur: COCOMI shuts down government offices, defies CM Biren Singh's plea

The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) proceeded with its plan to shut down government offices, disregarding an appeal from Chief Minister N Biren Singh to refrain from protests. 

The students' wing of COCOMI led the charge, closing several government offices including the Secretariat. 

They vacated staff and locked the premises, following through on their previous announcement.

Thokchom Dhanachandra, Convenor of COCOMI's students' wing, stated that the shutdown was a protest against the state and central governments for not addressing their demands. 

Also Read: Himanta Biswa Sarma appeals for Majuli's inclusion in UNESCO World Heritage Site list

He expressed disappointment that many offices continued to function, ignoring the committee's decision, which led to their closure. "Opening government offices despite announcing to the public is very unfortunate," he remarked.

Chief Minister N Biren Singh had appealed to COCOMI and other civil society organisations to avoid violence or protests, citing the centre's progress in implementing resolutions from a high-level meeting of NDA legislators on November 18. 

He mentioned that the NIA has re-registered cases related to the Jiribam violence and that security forces have commenced mass operations to apprehend those responsible for the deaths of six hostages in Jiribam.

Furthermore, Biren assured that the state government and NDA legislators are prepared to support the public in pursuing remaining demands, such as declaring the involved organisations as terrorists and repealing AFSPA from the jurisdiction of six Police Stations.