The death toll after ethnic clashes in India’s remote northeast rose to 54 on Saturday, with fresh violence overnight despite authorities rushing in troops to restore order. Thousands of soldiers were sent to Manipur state after a protest march by a tribal group turned violent on Wednesday.
Authorities imposed an Internet blackout and issued shoot-at-sight orders in “extreme cases” in an effort to contain the unrest. Police told AFP that the situation remained tense after a fresh bout of violence on Friday night, while The Press Trust of India said hospital morgues in state capital Imphal and Churachandpur district further south had reported a combined total of 54 dead.
“Sixteen bodies were kept in the morgue of the Churachandpur district hospital while 15 bodies were in Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences in Imphal East district,”.-AFP
