Guwahati: Three injured Kuki youths who had been admitted to the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Imphal were moved to Churachandpur on Tuesday night, as security forces shot dead a person they said was a militant in a separate clash.
Their admission to RIMS had sparked two days of angry protests outside the hospital, with demonstrators objecting to their treatment there on the grounds that they were members of armed groups, as reported by The New Indian Express.
The youths were wounded during a reported firefight near Leilon Vaiphei village in Kangpokpi district on June 15. Kuki groups, however, maintain that the three were victims of a “bomb attack” allegedly carried out by the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (NSCN-IM) and its “proxy” Zeliangrong United Front (Kamson faction).
Officials said the trio were taken out of RIMS after midnight on Tuesday and transported under heavy security to Churachandpur Medical College. Churachandpur is a district with a Kuki majority.
Authorities said the move was a precaution to prevent a law-and-order situation.
Meanwhile, Manipur Police said they received information from the Assam Rifles that a joint column of Assam Rifles and Army personnel engaged suspected militants on Tuesday.
“During the encounter, one suspected militant was killed. One AK-47 rifle, along with magazines, ammunition, explosives, and other incriminating items, was recovered from the spot,” Manipur Police said in a social media post.
Kuki groups, however, insist the person killed was a civilian.
Kuki MLA Letzamang Haokip strongly condemned the killing, calling it deeply disturbing and unacceptable that someone who was a civilian had been killed by those responsible for his safety.
“Eyewitnesses have alleged that, after he was shot, his clothes were removed and his lifeless body was taken away by the joint security forces. They further allege that, after his death, attempts were made to portray the incident as a fake encounter,” Haokip said in a statement.
He warned that if the claims proved true, they would amount to a gross misuse of power and a grave breach of legal norms.
“These allegations are extremely serious and warrant an immediate, impartial and transparent investigation,” he said.
