Imphal: The ongoing violence in Manipur claimed one more life on Wednesday after an armed group shot dead a private electric lineman in the state’s Tamenglong district.
At least 24 houses in two villages in neighbouring Kangpokpi district were set ablaze hours later, officials said.
Paojangam Chongloi, the 36-year-old lineman from Wakotphai village (Kuki village), was repairing a 33 KV power line at Lasan village under Tamei police station around 4 am when unidentified armed men allegedly shot him, the police said.
Around 5 am, unidentified armed men allegedly attacked and set fire to Makui Khuman and Makui Thanamba/Chamruioiu villages under the Chalwa police station in the Kangpokpi district, reducing around 24 houses to ashes, officials said.
The two Naga villages, about 2-3 km apart, are located around 15 km northeast of the police station.
“As my police team is unable to reach the spot, we have requested Kangpokpi police to conduct spot investigation and other necessary legal steps,” the officer-in-charge of Tamei police station told Hindustan Times.
The two villages had around 12 households each. Since the Kuki-Naga clashes began, all residents have been displaced and have taken shelter at Makui Khunjao, around 12 km away.
“When we reached our village, all the houses of had been reduced to ashes,” a villager said, adding, “No security forces have been deployed in the two villages.”
Thanggunhao Hangshing, secretary of a local body of Wakotphai village, lodged a written complaint against cadres of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) Issac Muivah faction at Tamei police station regarding the killing of the 36-year-old electric lineman.
His killing is being seen by many as a retaliatory act. A 17-year-old boy belonging to the Naga community was shot dead by unknown miscreants at Tamei on Monday.
Naga-Kuki tensions intensified following the twin ambushes on May 13 that left four people, including three church leaders, dead. In the aftermath of the ambushes, 48 people were taken hostage, triggering protests, shutdowns, and a blockade along all three national highways in the state.
The ethnic clashes in Manipur first began between the Meiteis and Kukis before getting nearly all communities involved.
The state’s Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities have shut each other out from the areas they dominate since the ethnic clashes began in May 2023, leaving at least 306 people dead and displacing 60,000.
There was a brief lull in the violence towards the start of 2026 and President’s Rule was withdrawn. However, the clashes between the Kukis and Nagas are now turning into a matter of concern.