Militants torch houses in Manipur's Kangpokpi; CRPF foils six-hour attack

Suspected militants attacked a Naga village in Manipur's Kangpokpi district late on Tuesday, burning at least two houses and exchanging fire with security forces for nearly six hours, officials said on Wednesday.

Officials said a large group of armed men, carrying sophisticated weapons, attacked Chawangkining Naga village around 10.30 p.m. on September 15 — hours after two Kuki women were shot dead at Leisangphai in Tamenglong district. Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel deployed in the area retaliated.

"Intermittent firing was reported for nearly six hours till 4.30 a.m. on Wednesday. The CRPF returned fire, preventing the militants from entering the village," an official said. Two wooden houses on the periphery of the village were, however, burnt down.

Villager Daniel Charenamai said the firing began around 10.30 p.m. and continued till 4 a.m. "Our village was attacked around 10.30 p.m. and firing continued till 4 a.m. CRPF deployed in our village returned fire and prevented it from being overrun," he said.

Officials did not identify the attackers, and no group has publicly claimed responsibility for the attack on the village or for the killing of the two women in Tamenglong district.

Awangbou Newmai, a senior Naga leader and legislator of the Naga Peoples' Front, condemned both the killing of the two women and the burning of houses at Chawangkining. "These kinds of barbaric and senseless acts will never bring any good things to any community," he said in a statement.

The Kuki MLA from the Saikul constituency in Kangpokpi district also condemned the killing of the two women, one of whom had recently completed a nursing degree. Alleging the involvement of NSCN-IM and ZUF-K cadres in the killings, she said: "The killing of the innocent women is an act of sheer brutality that cannot be justified by any political cause, ideology or grievance." Officials have not confirmed the allegation.

The two incidents are the latest in a series of attacks on civilian settlements in Manipur's hill districts. The state has been gripped by ethnic conflict since May 2023, when clashes broke out between the Meitei community of the Imphal valley and the Kuki-Zo communities in the hills. More than 200 people have been killed and tens of thousands displaced, according to official figures, and central forces have been deployed across the state to maintain peace.

Kangpokpi district, which borders Tamenglong, has a mixed population of Kuki-Zo and Naga communities and has seen repeated incidents of violence, including attacks on villages and on security convoys, since the conflict began. Naga-inhabited areas, which have largely stayed out of the Meitei-Kuki conflict, have also reported attacks on their villages.

The attack on Chawangkining followed within hours of the shooting of the two women, and both incidents have renewed concern among community leaders about the safety of civilians in the hill districts. Legislators from different communities have appealed for restraint, even as they differed sharply over who was responsible.