New Delhi: A 22-year-old woman from Senjam Chirang Maning Leikai, a village just three to four kilometres away from Koutruk, was critically injured in a bomb strike in her village on 2 September. Only a day earlier, Koutruk had faced the first alleged drone bomb attack in the fresh wave of violence in Manipur this month.
The girl sustained severe abdominal injuries from splinters, one of which, the doctors told ThePrint, was “the size of a thumb” whereas another measured just five millimetres in diameter.
The incident marked the escalating violence in Manipur, where the alleged use of loitering munitions and other advanced weaponry now signals a more dangerous phase in the conflict. As many as 13 people have died in the recent spate of violence.
“I was heading to the washroom outside when I heard the unmistakable whirring of drones. Fearing the lights in my chicken farm would attract attention, I rushed to turn them off. That is when a bomb dropped right next to me,” 22-year-old Watham Sanatombi told ThePrint, recalling the 2 September bomb strike in her village in Manipur’s Imphal West district. “Suddenly, I was in excruciating pain — my stomach was bleeding, and even my legs felt numb.”
Describing how her brother, 20-year-old Sanatomba, rescued her after the explosion, Sanatombi said, “He carried me back towards the house, and as my father wrapped my wounds with whatever cloth he could find, another explosion hit. This time, our house was hit.”
Speaking about the horror-filled night, her brother, Sanatomba, told ThePrint, “When I reached her, I saw her intestines had come out of her abdomen. She was bleeding heavily, and while my father was trying to stop the bleeding, another bomb struck our house.”
Due to the darkness, the siblings could not confirm whether drones were dropping bombs. However, they remembered hearing a distinct “whirring” sound in the air, suggesting the presence of drones nearby.
The alleged drone bombing in Koutruk on 1 September has sparked a war of claims and counterclaims between the Kukis and the Meiteis. On top of that, the official versions of the incident differ depending on who you ask.
Manipur Police claim drones dropped bombs — a mix of crude and factory-made ones although not very lethal — while security forces maintain there is no evidence to support claims of drone bombing.
Manipur Police suspect Kuki militants attacked Koutruk on 1 September, using “high-tech drones”. The Army, however, has claimed to have found no evidence of drones dropping bombs in Manipur — as reported by ThePrint earlier.
The next day, on 2 September, drones allegedly dropped a few more bombs in Koutruk but, by that time, the security forces had taken charge of the area, sources said. It is on this day that Sanatombi sustained the splinter injuries.
In its statement, Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM), the apex body of the Kuki community, has denied any use of drone bombs. It, however, called attention to an attempt to ambush Kuki-Zo civilians along the Kanggui-Lamka road on 9 September, leading to a heavy exchange of fire “between the combined forces of Arambai Tenggol, Valley-Based Insurgent Groups (VBIGs), Meitei state forces, and Kuki-Zo volunteers” in Kangchup region near Koutruk village.
Also Read: Manipur DGP forms panel to probe drone bombing, CM Biren Singh calls attack ‘act of terrorism’
‘Struggling to sleep, stressed’
Watham Sanatombi was taken to Raj Medicity Hospital before being referred to Shija Hospital in Imphal. Dr. Chandragupta Chongtham, Shija Hospital’s senior consultant surgeon who performed her surgery, told ThePrint that she was in “critical condition” when she arrived.
“When Sanatombi was brought in, part of her intestine was protruding from her abdomen due to a muscle and abdominal wall defect on the left side of her umbilicus. We quickly stabilised her and, within half an hour, she was moved to the operating theatre,” said Dr. Chongtham.
“Upon opening the abdomen, we discovered injuries to her stomach, and her gallbladder was already perforated. A metal fragment from the blast was lodged in the right side of her abdominal wall. There were two splinters — one the size of a thumb and another about 5mm. We had to remove her gallbladder and repair the stomach injury,” he said. “There was significant internal bleeding — about one to two litres — which we managed to control before removing the metal fragment from the abdominal wall.”
Sanatombi also suffered injuries to her thighs. Dr. Chongtham said that a splinter from the blast pierced through from one of her thighs to the right side of another. “The metal fragment from the blast was embedded in the back of her thigh. We could not remove it at the time because, after operating on her abdomen, it was not possible to reposition her on her stomach for another procedure,” he noted.
The roof of the house where the bomb struck | By special arrangement | ThePrint
Sanatombi’s family, along with other villagers, is now living in the temporary relief centre in the village — Senjam Khunou Primary School — after the recent incidents of violence.
“From last year, we have been living in constant fear and uncertainty. We cannot work — which has severely impacted our source of income. We struggle to get proper sleep and face ongoing stress about what each new day will bring,” Sanatombi said. “Our daily lives have been upended. Our ability to provide for ourselves has been compromised. I request the authorities concerned to resolve this crisis as soon as possible so that we can return to some semblance of a normal life.”
In a press conference on Tuesday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the government is talking to both the Meitei and Kuki communities to restore normalcy in Manipur.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)