The inter-ethnic clashes that have been shaking the Indian state of Manipur (northeast) and led to the deployment of soldiers have left a total of 54 dead, according to a report issued by the Indian news agency PTI.
The situation in this border state of Burma degenerated on Wednesday during a demonstration by tribal communities that protested against the request of the Meiteis, the majority ethnic group in Manipur, to benefit from positive discrimination measures.
Hundreds of Indian soldiers were sent to the scene on Thursday with orders to fire only "in extreme cases" to try to keep the streets calm. The authorities also reduced internet access and imposed a curfew.
The situation remained tense this Saturday after a new wave of violence registered on Friday night, police authorities told AFP.
A first assessment of the clashes reported to AFP on Thursday reported six deaths, but India's PTI news agency counted 54 deaths on Saturday based on data collected from local morgues.
Local authorities and security forces have not made the official assessment public, but India's Minister of Law and Justice, Kiren Rijiju, said at a press conference this Saturday that "many lives had been lost", regardless of the problems caused by the fighting.
On Thursday, security forces had used tear gas in Imphal, the state capital, to disperse protesters, some of whom had burned cars and homes.
Located in northeast India, the remote state of Manipur has experienced tensions involving ethnic groups and separatists for decades. Thus, the region is home to dozens of tribal groups and guerrilla movements whose claims range from greater autonomy to outright secession from the rest of India.
At least 50,000 people were killed in the various conflicts that followed the first Manipur state insurrection movement in the early 1950s.
However, these confrontations have faded over the years thanks to the agreements with New Delhi which have been granting more autonomy to several of these local groups.
