Six missing, 2 bodies found day after attack on Jiribam camp
The bodies of two civilians were recovered while six others were missing in Manipur’s Jiribam district a day after 10 armed militants were killed by security forces when they tried to storm a CRPF camp.
The bodies of two civilians were recovered while six others were missing in Manipur’s Jiribam district a day after 10 armed militants were killed by security forces when they tried to storm a Central Reserve Police Force camp and attack a police station, officials said on Tuesday.
The two civilian victims were identified as Maibam Kesho Singh (75) and Laishram Barel (61), both from Modhupur village in Jiribam district. The six missing were three women –– Y Rani Devi (60), T Thoibi Devi (31) and L Heitombi Devi (25) –– and three minor children from the same family.
“During a further search after yesterday’s incident, dead bodies of two civilian IDPs (internally displaced persons) were found at Jakuradhor village,” said inspector general of police (operations) IK Muivah during a press briefing at the state police headquarters in Imphal. “Now police are trying to trace those three missing women and three children.”
Inspector general of police (administration) K Jayenta Singh, who was also present at the briefing, said that three more civilians were rescued in Jiribam after Monday’s incident.
There were also reports of firing at some adjoining areas of Imphal West and Kangpokpi districts, and in some places at the order of Imphal East and Kangpokpi, he said.
On about 3pm on Monday, the Borobreka police station, where some IDPs were housed, and a CRPF post at Jakuradhor were simultaneously attacked by armed militants with sophisticated weapons including RPGs, the officers said. Militants also set fire to some houses in the village. Of the two bodies recovered on Tuesday, one of them was found charred, signalling that one of the victims was killed during the arson attack.
The civil police and CRPF retaliated, and after about 45 minutes of exchange of fire, the area was searched and 10 dead bodies of armed militants were recovered, they added. Three AK rifles,four SLRs, two INSAS rifles, one RPG, one pump action gun, bulletproof vests, helmets and magazines were recovered from them, the police said.
The Borobreka police station is 30km south of the Jiribam district headquarters. The CRPF post is located about 500 metres from the police station.Jiribam town is 220km west of Imphal.
The Hmar Inpui, the apex body of the Hmar tribe, claimed that the 10 Kuki persons killed in the Jiribam attack were Hmar village volunteers. “Hmar village volunteers were performing their routine duty to protect and safeguard our ancestral land and people in Jiribam. As they approached the CRPF camp, they lowered their weapons, and their leader interacted with the CRPF personnel,” the group said. He statement claimed that the CRPF fired from the bullerproof vehicles unprovoked.
This was the year’s largest single-day toll in Manipur amid 18 months of ethnic violence. In December 2023, at least 13 people were killed in gunfights between Kuki and Meitei groups in the state’s Tengnoupal district.
CRPF constable Sanjeev Kumar sustained bullet injuries and was evacuated to a hospital in Assam where he is under treatment.
The violence in Manipur started in May 2 in 2023 following a shut down call by Kuki groups to protest against the Manipur high court order asking the state government why majority Meiteis, who mostly live in plains of Imphal, cannot be given scheduled tribe reservation. So far, Kuki and other tribal groups, who mostly live in hill districts, are entitled for ST reservation.
Jiribam, having a mixed population of Meiteis and Kukis, was relatively peaceful till May this year. However, after body of a Meitei farmer was found near a CRPF camp on June 6, the district has witnessed series of violent conflicts between the two communities.
The Jiribam district administration has imposed prohibitory orders after Monday’s incident.
Meanwhile, 13 civil society organisations including women groups in Imphal on Tuesday announced a 24-hour shutdown in the state, demanding immediate intervention from the government to address the an escalation of violent. A woman farmer was shot dead while working at a paddy field in Lailampat area of Bishnupur district on November 9 followed by Monday’s incident in Jiribam district.
The situation in the state over the last 24 hours is tense but under control,” Manipur police said in a statement. Police also said that social media handles claiming the militants were ambushed were incorrect.
“The armed militants were not ambushed but were killed during retaliatory firing by security forces. Had the security forces not retaliated, the damage could have been much more. The armed militants have been found to be from distant Churachandpur and Pherzawl districts and had traversed a long distance to Jiribam district for planning/executing the attacks,” the statement said.
Sporadic incidents of violence continued to be reported from Manipur. Police said Kuki militants conducted attacks at multiple locations using sophisticated weapons, including bombs, improvised rockets and devices suspected to have been launched from drones. At least three exploded improvised rockets were recovered in Kadangband, Phayeng, and Kangchup in Imphal West district. Heavy gunfire also erupted in Thamnapokpi and Channung in Imphal East district, police said. No injuries were reported.
Meanwhile, Kuki Students Organisation(KSO), in a statement on Tuesday, issued a directive to all tribals not to cooperate with CRPF and not allow CRPF officials from leaving their camps. “Any CRPF personnel found in violation of the notice shall do so at their own risk and responsibility,” the statement said.
Senior officials from all security forces held a meeting on Monday and Tuesday to discuss the fragile law and order situation in the state. “All forces have been told that our aim is not ensure there is no violence. They will exercise restraint in dealing with both groups. But at the same time, if the forces come under fire, they have been told to respond appropriately,” a senior officer aware of the meetings said.