The residents of the two affected villages said the militants dropped bombs using a drone during the attack.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Violence returned to Manipur after a four-month pause with suspected extremists killing two persons and injuring at least six others, including two police personnel and a television journalist, in a gun-and-bomb attack using “high-tech drones” on Sunday.
Police said the gunfight and bombing began at 2.30 p.m. at Koutruk and Kadangband villages in the Meitei-dominated Imphal West district, which adjoins the Kuki-majority hill district of Kangpokpi.
The attacks continued till the time of reporting with personnel of the Manipur Rifles and Indian Reserve Battalion retaliating. Some houses were also torched after dusk.
A 31-year-old woman, Ngangbam Surbala, and a man from Koutruk, yet to be named, were killed in the attacks. The body of the woman, who died of bullet injuries in her head, was taken to the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences in the State capital Imphal for post-mortem. A resident of Phayeng in the same district, Ms. Surbala was caught in the attack when she was visiting her parental home at Koutruk with her eight-year-old daughter. The minor sustained injuries in her right hand.
Journalist Elangbam Mushuk of Impact News, a local news channel, was injured while covering the violence. He was one of two persons who were hit by splinters from bombs while five others received bullet wounds.
The deceased and the injured – seven of them women – belong to the Meitei community. All the injured are undergoing treatment at a hospital.
The residents of the two affected villages said the militants dropped bombs using a drone during the attack. In a purported video of the incident posted on social media, people can be seen running for cover as a man is heard saying “drone bombing has started”.
The last such gunfight between the tribal Kuki-Zos and the non-tribal Meiteis, the two warring communities, happened before the Lok Sabha elections in April.
The attack on Koutruk and Kadangband villages came a day after the Kuki-Zo people took out rallies in some hill districts demanding a separate administration for the community.
High alert sounded
Following the incident, Imphal West District Magistrate Th. Kirankumar issued an order imposing restrictions from 7 p.m. of September 1 “until further notice” under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita.
Manipur’s Director General of Police Rajiv Singh issued an “alert message” directing the Superintendents of Police of all the districts to remain on maximum alert, especially in the fringe areas.
“All forces deployed in their areas must be alerted. There must be proper coordination among the forces in order to prevent any untoward incident. Joint combing operations must be conducted. ADGP, zonal IGPs and range DIGPs must critically monitor the law and order situation to prevent any untoward incident,” the message read.
In a statement, the Manipur police said the extremists deployed numerous rocket-propelled grenades using high-tech drones. “While drone bombs have commonly been used in general warfare, this recent deployment of drones to deploy explosives against security forces and civilians marks a significant escalation,” it said.
“The involvement of highly trained professionals, possibly with technical expertise and support, cannot be ruled out. Authorities are closely monitoring the situation, and the police are prepared to respond to any contingency that may arise,” the statement added.
‘Bid to derail peace’
In a statement, the State government said it learnt about the attack on unarmed villagers, perpetrated reportedly by Kuki militants using “drones, bombs and many sophisticated weapons”.
“Such an act of terrorising the unarmed villagers is viewed very seriously by the State government when it is putting all possible efforts towards bringing normalcy and peace in the State,” the statement said, adding the attack was a bid to derail the efforts to establish peace.
The ethnic violence, which first broke out on May 3, 2023, has left more than 220 people dead and about 60,000 displaced. Most of the displaced people continue to live in relief camps.
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