Manipur violence intensified on Monday after three Meitei villagers were fatally shot and three others wounded in an alleged militant ambush near the Imphal East–Kangpokpi border, prompting protesters to carry two bodies to a sit-in outside the chief minister’s official residence in Imphal.
The victims, Arubam Ronil, 35, Lairenlakpam Inaobi, 51, and Kshetrimayum Sushil, 32, were part of a group of 14 people who had entered a forest near Nongshum and Khongbal Tangkhul villages at about 9.40am to collect firewood, according to the Times of India report. All three were residents of Nongshum.
The firing has revived tensions in Manipur’s valley districts over an alleged breach of the tripartite Suspension of Operations agreement by an armed Kuki outfit. The report attributed the attack to suspected militants and did not identify those responsible through an official confirmation.
Protesters took the bodies of two victims to a sit-in outside Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh’s official residence in Imphal. Security personnel later used tear gas to disperse the crowd. Police shifted the bodies to the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences for further procedures.
The chief minister convened an evening security meeting and directed the administration to strengthen deployment in areas identified as vulnerable. The response places the administration’s ability to secure forest routes, border areas and densely populated urban locations under renewed pressure as violence continues to affect movement and public order.
The killings were reported as the first involving members of Manipur’s majority Meitei community since January 21, when a Meitei man, Mayanglambam Rishikanta Singh, was allegedly shot dead in Churachandpur by suspected Kuki assailants. The report said attacks linked to friction between Kuki-Zo militant groups, NSCN-IM and other Naga outfits in the hill districts had killed around 50 people on both sides over the previous eight months.
The latest incident followed another death on Sunday, when a stray bullet struck Laishram Rakesh, 26, during a clash at a music event at the CYSA playground in Khangabok, Thoubal district. Several others were injured. Three Central Reserve Police Force personnel were also wounded in an improvised explosive device blast at Kakwa Lamdaibung Lampak near Singjamei police station in Imphal, according to the report.
The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity demanded that the state and Union governments revoke the Suspension of Operations agreement with Kuki-Zo militant groups. The demand comes as the administration reviews security deployment and identifies areas requiring additional protection. No further operational details or timeline for the strengthened deployment were provided in the report.
