Guwahati: Five persons including a father-son duo were killed and several others were injured in three separate incidents in Manipur in the past 24-hours as tension continued to raze in the conflict-hit state.
Suspected militants attacked Ningthoukhong Khakhunou village in Meitei-dominated Bishnupur district, killing four persons at around 4:30 pm. Villagers identified the victims as OInam Bamoijao, 61, his son Oinam Manitomba and their neighbour Thiyam Somen. Identity of the fourth person was not known. The village adjoins Kuki-dominated Churachandpur district. Six others were injured, sources said.
Sources said an attack at Kangchup, also a Meitei village in Imphal West district, at around 11pm on Wednesday led to killing of a 26-year Meitei "village defence volunteer." Imphal West shares a border with Kuki-dominated Kangpokpi district.
Confirming the deaths on a social media post at around 11pm on Thursday, Manipur police said efforts were on to arrest the perpetrators.
The incident took place hours before Home Minister Amit Shah began his visit to Meghalaya and Assam on Thursday. Shah will attend several functions on Friday and saturday. On Thursday evening, Shah inaugurated a cyber security operations centre at the Assam Rifles headquarters at Shillong (Meghalaya).
On Wednesday night, three BSF personnel were injured in firing by "armed miscreants" in Meitei-dominated Thoubal district during a protest against killing of two police commandos at Moreh allegedly by Kuki militants.
As the mob belonging to the Metiei community tried to storm into the Thoubal district police headquarters, security forces tried to stop them. "Armed miscreants from among the mob fired live rounds. As a result, three personnel from BSF sustained bullet injuries namely constable Gourav Kumar, ASI Sobram Singh and ASI Ramji," Manipur police said in a social media post.
The post further said an irate mob also targeted the 3rd Indian Reserve Battalion in Khangabok in Thoubal.
The mob was alleging failure of the security forces to maintain law and order at Moreh, a Kuki-dominated town in Kangpokpi district, near Myanmar border, where two Manipur police commandos were killed by suspected Kuki insurgents on Wednesday. Six other police personnel were also injured in the attack.
Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF), a forum of Kuki organisations, on Wednesday said at least 11 houses belonging to Kuki residents, two schools and a church were burnt down by armed miscreants belonging to the Meitei community, after the attack.
The state capital Imphal remained tense as Meitei protesters, particularly women, clashed with the security forces near Raj Bhavan and the CM's residence on Thursday. They demanded action against the Kuki insurgents alleging their involvement in the attacks at Moreh, a border town in Kuki-dominated Tengnoupal district.
Manipur has been roiled by the ethnic violence between the Meitei and the Kuki communities since May last year. Nearly 200 people have been killed and over 60,000 others have been displaced in the violence. Moreh reported fresh violence after the arrest of two local Kuki leaders on Monday for their alleged involvement in the killing of a sub-divisional police officer, a Meitei, on October 31.