Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, January 08 2009:
THE IMPHAL city based mini-bus passengers services warned to cease their normal services in the state indefinitely if the state authority fails to find whereabouts of two hijacked vehicles on or before January 15 next.
On December 21 evening last year, unidentified armed persons hijacked a diesel-auto,a popular passenger service auto-rickshaw (MN01-9641) from the gate of Manipur University Canchipur campus near here.
Md Ryajuddin of Lilong Nungei village was the owner of the vehicle.
This was followed by hijacking of Md Abdul Hakim's a mini van popularly known as Tata magic passenger service bearing the registration number MN01W-1388 by two unidentified persons at gun point from Singjamei Chingamakhong junction in Imphal west district on January 3 evening.Hakim is a resident of Lilong Arapti Lamkhai.
Since then whereabouts of the two passenger vehicles were not known immediately.
The reason behind the hijacking is also not known as of now.
None of the underground outfits operating in the region claim their involvement in the incident so far.
Protesting the incidents, drivers and owners of the diesel-auto and Tata magic staged a sit in demonstration at Lilong bazaar, 10 km south of here on Thursday besides taking out a protest rally from Lilong to Imphal.
Floating a Joint Action Committee,the drivers and owners of these Imphal town mini-vehicle passengers services also submitted a Memorandum to the State Chief Minister O Ibobi in this regard on Thursday urging him to find out the missing vehicles and do the needful on or before January 15 .
Commuters and passengers in and around the state capital faced a hard time as ninety percent of these short-distance passenger vehicles suspended their normal service for the day.
These passenger vehicles runs through a number of localities in and around the town besides connecting the main junctions Lilong in particular.