Father-Son Among Four Villagers Abducted, Killed By Suspected Kuki Militants In Manipur

New Delhi: Four villagers from Bishnupur district, including a father-son duo, were abducted and killed by suspected Kuki rebels in the neighbouring Churachandpur district of Manipur, according to the police on Thursday. The police official from Imphal said that the victims had gone to the nearby forests of Churachandpur district on Wednesday to gather firewood, when they were captured and slain by the militants.

The police team from Kumbi in Bishnupur district recovered the bodies of the victims on Thursday. The deceased were identified as Ibomcha Singh (51) and his son Anand Singh (20), Romen Singh (38) and Dara Singh (37). The villagers alerted the police after seeing the corpses on the social media platform, run by various Kuki groups.

The security forces have launched a search operation to arrest the militants. The recent killings raise doubts about the efficacy of the temporary “buffer zone” when people who venture to the foothills for livelihood-related activities are killed by the insurgents.

The ethnic conflict between the Kuki tribes, who are the majority in the hills, and the Meiteis, who are the majority in the valley, continues eight months after May 2023, when the Kukis opposed the Meiteis’ demand for ST status.

Churachandpur, which is dominated by the Kukis, is a hill district, and is 35 km away from Bishnupur, which is dominated by the Meiteis.