Ukhrul, Manipur: Fresh violence rocked Manipur’s Ukhrul district on April 24, Friday, as rival Naga and Kuki armed groups traded heavy gunfire, leaving three dead and several injured in a deadly escalation along the tense ethnic fault lines. The latest violence erupted after the killings of the two Naga people near the T M Kasom village.
The clashes ignited near Mullam village under Litan police station, where a fierce gunbattle claimed the lives of two Kuki-Zo village volunteers, Paominlun Haolai (22) from Haijang village in Churachandpur and Letlal Sitlhou (41) from K. Khonom in Kangpokpi. The Bungi-Ihan Defence Committee described them as brave defenders who fell while repelling an assault by Tangkhul Naga militants. Kuki Inpi Manipur reported that the attack razed 17 homes, wounded villagers including women and forced families to flee.
In a stark counterclaim, the Tangkhul Naga Long (TNL) working committee said one of the 29-year-old village guard Horshokmi Jamang from Chatric Khullen in Kamjong district, was ambushed and killed near Sinakeithei village by Kuki militants operating under a suspension of operation(SoO). Manipur Police confirmed the three fatalities from the firefight and have ramped up security, with ongoing sweeps to curb further bloodshed. It said, on April 24, in a heavy exchange of fire at Mullam village area under Litan-PS, Ukhrul district, three individuals sustained fatal bullet injuries. Security measures have been enhanced in the area to prevent further escalation of violence. Operations are still underway in the surrounding area.
Meanwhile, tensions boiled over the Myanmar border too. A faction of the NSCN(Aleng Group) boasted of wiping out five cadres from Myanmar’s Kuki National Army-Burma(KNA-B) in Kamjong district, alleging they had crossed into India to target Naga villages. The group linked the strike to the April 18 slaying of two Naga men near TM Kasom village and recent shootouts. While unverified by officials, social media videos show blindfolded captives, fueling fears of a wider cross-border feud.
Meanwhile, Meitei groups are calling these planned attacks by Kuki Zo militants on Naga people as an act of war. They call it an unprovoked and sustained naked armed aggression by Kuki militants against Naga and Meitei communities of Manipur.
As displaced families huddle in relief camps and security forces patrol the hills, residents brace for more unrest in this volatile Naga-Kuki heartland.
