Militants kill two CRPF personnel in Manipur

“There was a storm kind of condition and it was quite dark. Before the forces retaliated, they (militants)  red on the camp inmates, and four personnel got serious injuries out of which two succumbed to the injuries. Investigation will be done and we will take action against them. We will not spare them and bring them to the court of law. They will have to pay for this as per the law of the land... This is the  rst time that they have attacked the forces. None of the militants of Meiteis or Kukis attacked the forces as the forces are here to maintain peace and that is how we are in the middle of both communities. They call these forces (paramilitary) neutral forces... Earlier, you might have seen that the groups are attacking the national infrastructure like the roads and towers. Now, they are attacking Central forces. How this can be tolerated?” Mr. Singh said.

First time attacked

Mr. Singh said it was the  rst time that Central forces have been attacked and that in the past none of the Kuki-Zo or Meitei groups had attacked the Central security forces. The deceased personnel were identi ed as sub-inspector N. Sarkar, 55, from Assam’s Barpeta, and head constable Arup Saini, 40, from West Bengal. The injured personnel are inspector Jadav Das and constable Aftab Ul Hussain.

Manipur has been a§ected by ethnic violence between the tribal Kuki-Zo community and the majority Meitei community since May 3, 2023. Around 200 people have been killed and thousands displaced in the ongoing violence.

A large number of Central security forces are deployed in the State, particularly in the “bu§er zones” or areas where Kuki-Zo and Meitei villages are adjacent to each other.

Though an initial report  led by the Bishnupur police blamed “Kuki militants” for the attack, a top government source said the report was not  nal and cannot be said to be an “outcome of an investigation”.

Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh condemned the attack. In a post on X, he said, “Such actions demonstrate cowardice against dedicated security personnel who work tirelessly day and night to uphold peace and stability in the State. Their sacri ce will not go in vain.”

Kuki civil society groups such as the Kuki Inpi and the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum have denied that Kuki people were involved in the attack.