New Delhi: Ten armed Kuki “militants” were killed in “retaliatory firing” after they attacked security forces in Jiribam Monday afternoon, Manipur Police said, in a further escalation of violence in the state.
The men, armed with sophisticated weapons, including automatic guns and an rocket-propelled grenade (RPG), attacked a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) post at about 3 pm in the Borobekra-Jiribam area and were killed in “retaliatory firing”, the police said. The area is dominated by the Hmar tribal group.
A criminal case has been registered and the incident is being investigated, police said in the statement.
“After 40–45 minutes of heavy exchange of fire, the situation was brought under control. After the firing ceased, the area was searched and ten dead bodies of armed militants were recovered along with arms and ammunition,” the statement said.
The weapons recovered by the police included three AK-47s, four self-loading rifles (SLRs), two Indian Small Arms Systems (INSAS), one rocket-propelled grenade (RPG), and one Pump Action Gun, along with bullet proof jackets, helmets, and magazines, the police said.
Speaking to ThePrint, Thangtinlen Haokip, information secretary of the Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU), said that these were not militants but “village defence volunteers”.
“These are not militants, but our village defence volunteers, who have been on the ground since the violence began, to protect their community. It is wrong to call them militants,” he said. “We are trying to get in touch with their families and chart out the next course of action. What has happened is extremely unfortunate.”
The Hmar Students’ Association condemned the incident as a “premeditated massacre of Hmar Village Volunteers” and accused the CRPF of involvement.
“Videos circulating on social media, showing the merciless dragging of the dead bodies, confirm the involvement of the CRPF. All village volunteers in Kuki-Zo areas are now on high alert, prepared to defend their people against further aggression,” read their statement.
In a press statement Khaikhohauh Gangte, the Kuki-Zo Council’s secretary of information, said that the organisation has announced a “total shutdown”, from 5 am-6 pm Tuesday “in honour of the victims and to express our collective grief and solidarity who were brutally shot dead”.
“The loss of our precious Kuki-Zo lives is not only a devastating blow to the families, but to the entire Kuki-Zo Community who stand united in our pursuit of peace, justice, and security. We condemn in the strongest terms the violence that took place today and call for immediate and thorough investigations to bring the perpetrators to justice.”
This comes days after a 31-year-old woman was allegedly raped and burnt alive Thursday night in a brutal attack on Zairawn, another Hmar-dominated village in Manipur’s Jiribam district.
According to residents, 80 to 100 armed assailants, allegedly from the Meitei community and radical armed Meitei group Arambai Tenggol, opened fire at the villagers and set as many as 17 homes ablaze, escalating violence in the region.
In another incident, a woman from the Meitei community was shot dead by suspected Kuki insurgents while she was working in a paddy field in Bishnupur district Saturday.
According to the police, in the Monday incident, one CRPF constable, Sanjeev Kumar, sustained bullet injury.
“There was an exchange of fire… three CRPF men also sustained injuries in the exchange of fire,” a police source told ThePrint.
One of the three CRPF personnel who was critically injured has been flown to Silchar in Assam for further treatment, the source said.
Following the incident, additional security forces from both state and central agencies have been deployed to the area to maintain order.
“Operations in and around Jakuradhor, under Borobekra Police Station, Jiribam District continues to flush out armed militants. Reinforcement teams consisting of Assam Rifles, CRPF and Civil Police have been rushed there,” police added.
“The area has been on red alert. We have increased the deployment and will be carrying out area domination exercises. The situation in Jiribam remains tense, with authorities closely monitoring developments,” the source quoted above said.
(Edited by Sanya Mathur)
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Narco-terrorism must be countered with the full might of the Indian state. President’s rule must be imposed on Manipur and the armed forces should be allowed a free hand to deal with these insurgents.
Great news indeed!
The Kuki-Hmar-Zo people are natives of Myanmar. Over the last seven decades, due to rampant illegal immigration across the porous Indo-Myanmar border, they were able to settle down on Indian land – primarily in remote hilly and forested areas. They are the ones responsible for the narco-terrorist trade across the border.
It’s high time the security agencies seal off the Indo-Myanmar border – with electric fences and technology assisted intensive patrolling.
Good luck to the forces! Let’s bake some cookies!