At least 15 Kuki homes torched in Manipur’s Kamjong, residents flee

• Suspected militants burnt at least 15 Kuki homes in Manipur’s Chassad village, forcing residents to flee to forests and an Army camp.

• The arson followed a shooting that killed one Kuki civilian and injured four others earlier on Saturday.

• Security forces have been deployed, while three Tangkhul Naga civilians were injured in a separate shooting at Kamjong district headquarters.

Suspected militants set fire to at least 15 houses belonging to Kuki families in Manipur’s Kamjong district late on Saturday, forcing scores of residents to seek shelter in nearby forests and an Army camp, officials said on Sunday.

The attack on Chassad village followed a shooting earlier in the day in which suspected militants killed a Kuki civilian and injured four others, officials said.

Police said a joint column comprising Assam Rifles, Border Security Force and Kamjong Police personnel had been deployed to contain the violence.

Deputy Chief Minister Nemcha Kipgen condemned the attacks, expressing grief over the civilian’s death and concern for injured village leaders and families driven from their homes. She described the burning of houses as an intolerable crime.

Kipgen said she had directed the district administration, police and security forces to maintain round-the-clock vigilance, safeguard civilian lives and property, and bring those responsible to justice.

In a separate incident at Kamjong district headquarters on Saturday night, three Tangkhul Naga civilians suffered bullet injuries in an attack by rival armed groups belonging to another community, officials said.

With agency inputs