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Imphal. Manipur ( Manipur) Chief Minister N. Biren Singh on Sunday said that around 40 armed militants involved in arson of houses and firing on people have been killed since the security forces launched the operation to restore peace in the state. Two people were killed and 12 others injured on Sunday in separate incidents of firing on people and clashes between militants and security forces in different areas of the state, police officials said.
One person was killed and another injured in firing by suspected Kuki militants at Phayeng in Imphal West district, they said. Officials said that a policeman was killed in the firing in Suganu, while another was injured. Six others were injured in Sugnu and four in Serau.
Officials said the latest clashes began after the army launched a search operation to disarm communities in order to restore peace. Chief Minister Singh said around 40 armed militants involved in arson of houses and firing on people have been killed since the security forces launched the operation to restore peace in the state.
Talking to mediapersons at the state secretariat, the chief minister claimed that the recent round of clashes were “not between communities, but between Kuki militants and security forces.” Terming Kuki militants as “terrorists”, Singh also said That there have been cases of armed militants firing on people with AK-47, M-16 and sniper rifles. He said that the security forces targeted these militants in retaliation.
The chief minister appealed to the people not to obstruct the movement of security personnel and urged them to “repose faith in the government and support the security forces”. “We have experienced hardships for so long and we will never allow the state to disintegrate,” Singh said, adding that several Kuki militants involved in the killings of civilians and damage to property and arson of houses were arrested by the Jat Regiment. has caught.
The chief minister said the government was “deeply saddened by the casualties on both sides” and assured of “taking all possible steps to bring the situation back to normal”. He said that the spurt in incidents of violent attacks on the homes of common people in the areas around the Imphal Valley seems to be well-planned. Singh termed it as ‘extremely condemnable’ especially when Union Minister Nityanand Rai is in Manipur and peace missions are being made for peace and tranquility. Singh said that 38 sensitive areas have been identified and the state police is conducting operations there.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Khwairakpam Raghumani Singh’s residence was ransacked and two of his vehicles set on fire at Uripok in Imphal West, a top security official told PTI. He said clashes between rival ethnic militant groups as well as militants and security forces broke out at several places in the early hours. “As per our information, firing has been reported from Sugnu in Kakching, Kangvi in Churachandpur, Kangchup in Imphal West, Sagolmang in Imphal East, Nungoipokpi in Bishenpur, Khurkhul in Imphal West and YKPI in Kangpokpi,” the official said.
The officer said that unconfirmed information has also been received from Kakching police station about the Meitei group looting weapons. In Kakching district’s Napat, Serau and nearby Sugnu, militants torched around 80 houses of the Meitei community, forcing the villagers to flee past midnight, he said. In the eastern part of the Manipur Valley, armed militants stormed Yayangangpokpi in Imphal East district, torched two houses and fired at villagers.
At Sekmai in Imphal West district, armed militants attacked, leading to firing from both sides. In Bishnupur district, armed Kuki militants attacked Phougkachao Ikhai, Torbang and Kangwai areas on Saturday night, torching over thirty houses belonging to the Meitei community.
Due to the violence in the last few hours, the district authorities reduced the 11-hour relaxation in curfew to only six-and-a-half hours in Imphal East and West districts. Over 75 people were killed in ethnic clashes in Manipur after the Meitei community organized a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ in the hill districts on May 3 to protest their demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.
The eviction of the Kuki villagers from the reserved forest land had already deepened the tension. The Meiteis constitute about 53 per cent of Manipur’s population and mostly live in the Imphal Valley. About 140 companies of Army and Assam Rifles, comprising more than 10,000 personnel, had to be deployed, apart from paramilitary forces, to restore normalcy in the state.
