Manipur Violence: Security Forces fire to disperse mob attacking Kuki-Zo Council chairman's residence

As a mob made repeated attempts to barge into the residence of Kuki-Zo Council (KZC) chairman Henlienthang Thanglet in Manipur, Churachandpur, security forces fired in the air to quell them.

The incident took place on Sunday when the miscreants attacked the residence of Thanglet following his meeting with chief minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh in Guwahati on Saturday.

A senior police officer said, “Since Sunday afternoon, there have been repeated attempts to barge into Thanglet’s residence. Stones were also pelted. Following the intervention of security forces, the mob was dispersed. However, within a short interval, the mob regrouped and made further attempts. Then security personnel resorted to tear gas shelling to disperse the mob as it tried to breach the compound.”


The officer added, “Groups roaming in the town are creating panic. On Sunday night, when youths again attempted to barge into the chairman's residence, security forces opened fire in the air to prevent them.” He said, “Some agitators also burnt tyres in the Tuibong area near Churachandpur town, but security forces dispersed them by firing tear gas shells.”

Khemchand Singh stated that the government’s move to hold talks with the Kuki-Zo Council is the first step towards reducing the trust deficit between the two communities in the state. He added that it is also an effort to bridge the gap between the communities and restore peace. The meeting took place at a hotel in Guwahati on Saturday.

The CM maintained that the state is inhabited by 36 different communities and that the state will remain intact. “Let us forgive and forget the past for a better future,” he added. He also said that there has been an improvement in the law-and-order situation along the Imphal–Ukhrul Road.

The Kuki-Zo Council stated, “As the first engagement after nearly three years of conflict between the Meitei and the Kuki-Zo communities, the interaction was largely an ice-breaking session. The KZC delegation raised several key issues, all of which were attentively heard by the chief minister. Prominent among these were the urgent need to de-escalate the ongoing tensions between the Kuki and Tangkhul communities, and the imperative of ensuring justice for the victims of the conflict as a fundamental prerequisite for any meaningful peace and reconciliation process.”

Since May 3, 2023, Kukis have rarely ventured into the valley areas, while Meiteis have largely avoided Kuki-inhabited regions. In recent times, there have been increasing clashes between Tangkhul Nagas and Kukis.

Meanwhile, security forces, along with Manipur Police, arrested 15 militants, including a 17-year-old, belonging to two banned underground organisations in separate operations, and recovered seven explosives, including a rocket-propelled grenade, in Churachandpur district.

According to an official statement, Manipur Police, acting on specific intelligence inputs about the presence of militants, launched a counter-insurgency operation in the Haokha area under Nongpok Sekmai police station in Thoubal district on Sunday. During the operation, 14 cadres of the banned underground outfit United National Liberation Front (Koireng faction) were arrested. Police said that 15 automatic assault rifles, 100 live INSAS rounds, Rs 1 lakh in cash, and four four-wheeler vehicles were seized during the operation.