New Delhi: For Ngangbam Ingo, 1 September was a harsh reminder that he is a resident of violence-wracked Manipur, where life can change in the blink of an eye.
“My wife told me there was heavy gunfire and continuous airstrikes in Koutruk. I urged her to take cover until things calmed down,” he told ThePrint. “But just three minutes later, I received a call from a local, who was using her phone, telling me my wife had been shot, and my daughter was injured in the attack.”
After a brief lull of nearly four months, Manipur witnessed fresh violence Sunday. Suspected Kuki militants attacked villagers in Koutruk, Imphal West district, using guns and “high-tech drones”, according to Manipur Police, killing at least two civilians, including Ingo’s 31-year-old wife, Ngangbam Surbala, and injuring several others, including his daughter.
Their 11-year-old daughter is still in the hospital with a bullet injury in one of her arms. She still doesn’t know about the death of her mother.
“We were feeling at ease since there hadn’t been any incidents and we hoped normalcy would return to Manipur. That’s why we started moving again,” Ingo told ThePrint. “My wife was on visiting her maternal home in Koutruk with our daughter after seeing off our 14-year-old son at his boarding school. But in the blink of an eye, I lost her.”
Ingo, a Village Defence Force (VDF) personnel with the Manipur Police in Phayeng Mayai Leikai, has accused the central forces of failing to take action.
“The central forces stood by as mute spectators; this happened right in front of them. I don’t want anyone else to go through what I’ve been through. I want to be the last husband who has to suffer this. It’s time now—we want peace and a return to normal life,” he added.
Eyewitness Laishangthem Romen told ThePrint that the attack began around 2 pm Sunday and lasted till 9.30 pm with multiple rounds of gunfire and “drone airstrikes”.
“The woman was killed in the first round of firing,” he said.
Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM), the apex body of the Kuki community, in a statement refuted claims of drone bombs having been used, and alleged that it was an attempt to “ambush Kuki-Zo civilians along the ‘Kanggui-Lamka road” that led 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: Fresh violence in Manipur leaves 2 dead, home dept says drones used in attack
‘BSF personnel caught off guard’
Romen was on his way back from herding goats in an area near Koutruk when the attack began. The Border Security Force was caught off guard.
“As I approached the spot at the entry into the village, where security forces had constructed two temporary barracks, I saw an excavator driver working with two BSF personnel standing guard. Suddenly, gunfire erupted,” he recalled.
“Luckily, the BSF soldiers fired back with their automatic guns as I took cover. The firing went on non-stop for about 20 to 25 minutes. Our village’s response took time because the security forces weren’t prepared for the attack. Some of them weren’t even in complete uniform, and not all were equipped with guns. It took them time to respond effectively.”
“After the initial delay, our village’s security forces and additional BSF reinforcements fired back using LMGs (light machine guns) to drive the attackers away,” said Romen.
At this point, the firing temporarily stopped and Romen made his way to a safer area of the village where more BSF were stationed. That’s where he learnt of Ingo’s wife and daughter’s injuries.
“All of us (villagers) decided to use a van stationed nearby to take the mother and the child to the hospital,” he said. The mother, who suffered a bullet injury to her head, passed away later at the hospital.
“Typically, after such attacks, the firing ceases within about half an hour. However, on that day, the attackers remained silent for a while and then resumed firing to make us believe they had retreated. As soon as the villagers emerged from their hiding spots, the firing started again,” Romen, also the secretary of the Koutruk Apunba Youth Club, told ThePrint.
It was in this second round of firing, Romen explained, that the attackers began using drones. He believes it was after a gap of about 30 minutes, though it was hard to keep track of time in the chaos. Around 3 pm, additional security forces and village volunteers arrived as reinforcements.
“We gathered in a nearby club building with sturdy brick walls, but a non-permanent roof, hoping it would be safe from the firing. However, the attackers used drones to locate our position and then dropped bombs on the building—targeting both the security forces and volunteers,” he said.
“Our village had bunkers for defence, built early in the crisis, but the bombings still damaged the area where the BSF personnel and volunteers were stationed,” he said. One civilian was injured in this round of attacks.
On Monday, the Manipur Director General of Police (DGP) constituted a high-level committee to “critically examine and study” the use of weaponised drones by the suspected Kuki militants in Koutruk.
Romen said that the destruction of homes and property could have been prevented if the “concerned authorities” had acted swiftly. “The attack lasted until 9.30 pm, still they couldn’t secure additional help from nearby security forces. How is that possible?” he asked.
The incident has shaken the villagers but they have no plans to leave. Apart from women and children, Romen said, a strict rule has been put in place requiring all men to stay in the village. “If we leave here, it would be easier for the attackers to burn down the whole village, so we are going to protect it,” he said.
This is an updated version of the report
(Edited by Sanya Mathur)
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