Guwahati: In Manipur's Kangpokpi district, three people, including an elderly woman, were killed early on Friday. According to the villagers, the attackers were dressed in police and IRB (India Reserve Battalion) clothing.
The attack happened not long after Kuldiep Singh, the Manipur government's security advisor, said that there had not been violence in the state for 48 hours. The state has been inflamed by ethnic conflict for more than a month, Indian Express reported.
Kukis reside in Khoken village, where residents claim that at around 4 am, armed men entered the area and started shooting for around two hours.
Police confirmed that three people were killed and two were injured, but they withheld other information about the incident.
Khoken is located on the boundary between Imphal West and Kangpokpi district. Sangaithel, which is part of the Imphal West district, is only one kilometre from the village.
The three victims were named by Khoken locals as Domkhohoi, 65, Khaijamang Guite, 52, and Jangpao Touthang, 40.
An estimated 40 persons invaded the area in the early hours, according to Thongkhup Doungel, a local and Domkhohoi's younger brother.
“They were dressed in a mix of black T-shirts worn by members of Arambai Tenggol, and police and IRB uniform, and they began firing indiscriminately. The firing went on for around two hours. We vacated the village and went to the nearest CRPF camp and informed them. The attackers left only after CRPF and the Gorkha Regiment came to the village. They left in five Gypsy which we could see were police vehicles,” he claimed.
He said Domkhohoi was killed in the village church where she had gone to pray. “Both men were ordinary farmers, while my sister was a widow,” he said.
The attack, according to the Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF), was carried out by militants living in the valley who were dressed as soldiers. According to the forum, the victims were civilians.
“The Kuki-Zo villagers, not suspecting the attackers’ true identity and assuming it was a combing operation, gave way but were met with automatic rifle fire, resulting in the tragic deaths of villagers,” the tribal body said.
The Committee on Tribals Unity Sadar Hills, which had previously resolved to lift the blockade on NH-2 to allow for the flow of necessities, decided to reimpose the closure of the National Highway in response to the incident.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by a DIG-rank officer has been formed by the Central Bureau of Investigation to look into cases involving the ethnic violence between Meiteis and Kukis in Manipur, which has claimed close to 100 lives. Six FIRs have been re-registered at this time. There are 10 officers in the SIT.