Imphal, March 21: Leprosy patients and orphan children at children home at Chingmeirong Lei-inkhol today staged a sit-in protest against extortion demand served at the Leprosy Patients’ Welfare Society, the society working for the welfare of the leprosy patients and children home.
The Leprosy Patients Welfare Society is the only society working for the welfare of the leprosy infected people residing together at Lei-ingkhol, an isolated place in Imphal west district. With a meager fund from the state government, the society is serving the leprosy patients treating at run Leprosy Hospital apart from running an orphan home.

When a situation that the officer bearers left the society owing to huge extortion demand of Rs 5 lakh from underground group allegedly from the KCP(MC)-Lalheiba group come up with strong pressure, leprosy infected people and orphan children came out and staged a sit-in protest at the office premise of the society at Lei-inkhol.
Around 100 people infected leprosy who society look down as sin riddled people residing isolate at Lei-ingkhol, the only asylum place for them and orphan children run by the same society Sunday staged a sit-in protest against the extortion demand served to the society. They are demanding withdraw of the monetary demand served at the society considering their selfless service and concerns towards the leprosy infected people, the weakest section of the society and for the children at the orphan home.

A women leprosy patient said office bearers of the society were not rich people. ‘They are providing assistants to us with the fund availed from the government which were not flow regularly.’
At most time they run post to pillar for money and utilized their pocket money to meet the demands of the leprosy patients. It would very inhumane act to ask them to siphon off funds received by the society, she went on to observe.
According to the office bearers, some unknown persons said to be members of KCP(MC) served Rs 5 lakh to the society through its General Secretary, Ahanthem Tolen. The demand letter was received in the last week of February. Since then they were pressing to pay the money till day.

“We have made it clear that we will not able to meet the huge amount they serve but instead of hearing our request, they asked to ensure payment at the earliest by reducing the amount at Rs 2 lakh, a member of the society who did not want to name said.
Actually, the group is demanding to siphon off the fund recently released from state Community Care Centre to the society which already started spent in advance to meet the financial constraint in the office, he revealed.

Hueiyen News Service