Renewed violence in Manipur as 3 members of Kuki community killed

Armed miscreants gunned down three members from the Kuki community in Manipur’s Ukhrul district on Friday morning, officials confirmed.

According to police, the incident took place around 4:30am at Thouwai Kuki, a village inhabited by Kuki tribals, located around 47km from Ukhrul town, the headquarters of the district, which is dominated by Tangkhuls, a Naga tribe.

“According to our information, a group of armed miscreants approached the village from the hills located to the east of the village and started firing at village guards. Three people from the village have been killed in the incident. There are no reports of any injuries,” said N Vashum, superintendent of police (SP), Ukhrul, confirmed.

Following the incident, the SP said that the security measures have been beefed up and joint operations by state police and the Indian Army are underway to nab those involved.

On August 5, five persons, three Meiteis and two Kukis, were killed in separate incidents of shooting between the two communities at Bishnupur and Churachandpur districts.

Clashes in Manipur first broke out on May 3 in Churachandpur town after Kuki groups called for protests against a proposed tweak to the state’s reservation matrix, granting scheduled tribe (ST) status to the Meitei community.

Violence quickly engulfed the state where ethnic fault lines run deep, displacing tens of thousands of people who fled burning homes and neighbourhoods into jungles, often across state borders.

The clashes have claimed over 160 lives and displaced around 50,000.

Meiteis account for nearly 53% of the state population while Kukis comprise around 16%.