BY PC Bureau
August 28: A fresh security scare hit Imphal early Friday when an explosive device was detonated inside the residential compound of BJP MLA and Manipur government spokesperson Sapam Ranjan Singh. The incident, which caused minor damage but no injuries, prompted Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh to visit the site and condemn the attack as “senseless and barbaric.”
The blast took place at around 1.30 am on August 28 at the rear of Singh’s residence in Imphal West, which falls within the Konthoujam constituency. The explosion damaged portions of the compound wall and left a small crater.
Police reached the location soon after the blast and secured the area. Security agencies have begun examining the explosive device and are investigating who may have planted it and the possible motive behind the attack.
Singh said the explosion was powerful enough to shake his house.
“It happened around 1:30 am on August 28, 2026. There was a loud sound, and initially we thought the incident had taken place somewhere very close to my house. We later came to know that the blast had occurred behind my house, within my campus,” he told reporters.
The MLA said he had not received any prior threat. He had returned to Imphal on Thursday after holding meetings with central leaders in New Delhi on issues concerning Manipur and met local party workers later in the day.
Condemning the incident, Singh said violence against anyone was unacceptable and expressed relief that nobody had been injured.
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Vsited the residence of MLA Dr. Sapam Ranjan Singh at Konthoujam Mayai Leikai following a bomb blast at his residence early this morning. I strongly condemn such senseless and barbaric attack on the residence of a people’s representative. This act of violence is an attack on our… pic.twitter.com/AizMYQatw4
— Khemchand Yumnam (@YKhemchandSingh) August 28, 2026
“Such incidents are highly condemnable… Luckily, with God’s grace, no one was hurt. But I believe such incidents should never, ever be repeated,” he said.
Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh visited the MLA’s residence on Friday afternoon and took stock of the situation. In a social media post, he described the explosion as a “senseless and barbaric attack” on a public representative and said those responsible would be brought to justice.
The incident also triggered a local protest, with women from Konthoujam staging a sit-in outside Singh’s residence and condemning the use of violence.
Security agencies are now examining the nature of the explosive, its method of deployment and the circumstances surrounding the blast. Investigators are also trying to establish whether the attack was directed specifically at Singh or forms part of a wider security threat in Imphal.
The explosion comes at a sensitive time for Manipur, where security remains a major concern following prolonged ethnic violence and continuing tensions between communities. The targeting of a sitting legislator inside his residential compound is likely to intensify concerns over the ability of security agencies to prevent attacks in urban areas and protect public representatives.
For now, investigators are working to identify those behind the blast and determine whether the incident has any connection with militant groups, extortion networks, political hostility or other ongoing security problems in the state.
