IMPHAL: The border town of Moreh in Manipur’s Tengnoupal district witnessed yet another gunfight between militants and security forces on Sunday.
The region had been grappling with a spate of attacks on security forces, primarily targeting Manipur police commandos.
An umbrella group representing Kukis in the district told the local press that the gunfight erupted at 9 pm on Sunday, resulting in no reported casualties.
This incident followed a previous clash on January 2, where seven security personnel, including four Manipur police commandos and three Border Security Force (BSF) personnel, sustained injuries during a search operation.
On December 30, militants launched a bold attack on Manipur police commandos within their barracks, employing rocket-propelled grenades (RPG), as reported by the Hindustan Times.
Initial blame for the December 30 incident had been attributed to the Kuki National Army (KNA), the Kuki National Army Burma (KNA-B), and the United Kuki Liberation Front (UKLF) by Imphal-based media outlets.
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However, a group named “Village Volunteers, Tengnoupal District (Eastern Zone)” issued a subsequent “clarification”, refuting the involvement of the mentioned groups in the gunfight.
Amidst the ongoing turmoil, local village volunteers have demanded the substitution of Manipur police with central paramilitary forces, citing alleged bias on the part of the state police commandos.
Expressing concern, Chief Minister Biren Singh had raised suspicions about the potential engagement of mercenaries from Myanmar in the recent attacks.
“We have doubts about the involvement of foreign mercenaries from the Myanmar side,” he told a national daily.
He has been voicing similar apprehensions since the outbreak of the ethnic violence in the state on May 3.
Critics, however, argue that these statements aim to deflect responsibility from the government’s failure to quell the escalating violence in the region.
