Armed Groups in Manipur Burn Villages in Renewed Clashes Between Kuki and Naga Communities

Armed groups went on a village-burning spree along the India-Myanmar border in Manipur’s Kamjong district on Wednesday, marking a resurgence of conflict between Kuki and Naga communities after a pause. Two Kuki organisations — the Committee on Tribal Unity and the Kuki CSO Working Committee — condemned the alleged torching of about 20 houses in Phaimol Kuki village. They accused the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (NSCN) of coordinating the attack with help from the Myanmar-based Shanni Nationalist Army.

The NSCN, dominated by the Tangkhul Nagas who are in the majority in Kamjong and the adjoining Ukhrul district, denied the allegations. The Kuki organisations said the attack occurred a day after the paramilitary Assam Rifles vacated its security post at Phaimol, leaving the village unprotected. They pointed to a similar attack on the Kultuh border village on June 11, which they said reflected a pattern of targeted violence against Kuki villagers in the district. The organisations urged the Centre to launch a crackdown on the NSCN and other armed groups involved.

In contrast, a Kamjong-based Naga organisation claimed that Kuki armed groups set fire to Phaimol as a pre-planned manoeuvre to attack Huimin Thana and Kherongram, two Tangkhul Naga villages. The Eastern Command Naga Village Guard said that Kukis plotted the arson in collusion with the Kuki National Army-Burma to justify torching 25 houses in the Naga villages. According to eye witnesses, 20 armed Kukis crossed the Namya River from Phaikoh village and launched a targeted offensive against the Naga settlements. Locals fled, but their houses were razed. The organisation also said 20 camps sheltering 365 Burmese refugees at Kherongram were torched. The attacks on Naga settlements occurred minutes after abandoned houses at Phaimol were set ablaze around 1:30 p.m.

The incident is reminiscent of the burning of Lanchah village before three Tangkhul Naga villages were attacked on May 7. Meanwhile, Manipur Police arrested three members of the People’s Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak, a Meitei extremist outfit, in connection with grenade attacks targeting homes in Imphal East and Imphal West districts. The region has seen periodic ethnic violence, and the latest clashes underscore the fragile security situation in the border area.