Warring Meitei and Kuki-Zo groups staged peaceful bandhs in their respective areas of influence in Manipur on Tuesday following the deaths of at least 10 armed men and two civilians in an attack on a police station and a Central Reserve Police Force camp in Jiribam district, and "abduction" of six civilians.
While Meitei organisations demanded the immediate release of the civilians, which included women and children, allegedly kidnapped by the militants, the Kuki-Zo groups alleged that "11 youths of the community" were "treacherously murdered in a fake encounter".
The Manipur Police said 10 suspected militants were killed in a fierce gunfight with security forces on Monday after insurgents in camouflage uniforms, armed with sophisticated weapons, fired indiscriminately at the Borobekra police station and an adjacent CRPF camp at Jakuradhor in Jiribam district.
However, a senior government official put the toll at 11.
An uneasy calm prevailed in Jiribam district on Tuesday as police patrolled vulnerable areas amid a rescue operation launched for the missing civilians. Police said purported photographs of the six missing persons in captivity of militants doing the rounds on social media could not be confirmed and the rescue operations will continue till they were traced.
Around 100 internally displaced persons (IDPs) were sheltered in a relief camp on the police station compound.
Following the attack, the bodies of two elderly IDPs were recovered and another three rescued, while six, including three women and children each, remained untraced. Jiri Apunba Lup, the apex Meitei body in Jiribam, claimed the six missing persons were of the same family.
Speaking to reporters at the state police headquarters here, IGP (Operations) I K Muivah said, "Ten militants were found dead after the retaliation by security forces and one CRPF jawan was injured and was evacuated to Assam for treatment. Two elderly civilians were also found dead, while three women and three minors remained missing. Police are trying to trace them."
When journalists pointed out that Kuki-Zo bodies claimed that the slain militants were "village volunteers", Muivah said, "We have seized sophisticated firearms from the spot. This shows very clearly that they were armed militants."
IGP administration K Jayanta Singh said, "We had exercised maximum restraint and retaliated only when fired upon. Had the security forces not retaliated, and with the miscreants targeting the civilians, the casualties of civilians would have been higher."
On purported photographs of the six missing persons in captivity of militants doing the rounds on social media, the senior officer said, "We have seen the photographs... however, things are not confirmed yet. Search operations will continue."
The six missing persons were identified as Yumrembam Rani Devi (60), Telem Thoibi Devi (31) and her daughter Telem Thajamanbi Devi (8), Laishram Heithoibi Devi (25) and her two children Laishram Chingkheinganba Singh (two-and-a-half-years old) and Laishram Lamnganba Singh (10 months).
Earlier in the day, the bodies of two elderly men, identified as Laishram Balen and Maibam Kesho, were found following the gunfight.
Muivah said, "The two elderly men died after the insurgents torched a few shops in Jakuradhor Karong area."
Meanwhile, schools and colleges were closed, markets shut, and vehicles remained off the roads as the hill areas witnessed a total shutdown. The 13-hour bandh, which began at 5 am, was called by the Kuki-Zo Council to "express collective grief and solidarity for those who were brutally shot dead" in Jiribam on Monday.
No untoward incident was reported from anywhere in the Kuki-dominated hill areas during the shutdown, officials said.
Various Kuki-Zo organisations sought a probe into the events that unfolded in Jiribam.
In a statement, the Kuki Students' Organisation said, "...no CRPF personnel shall be allowed to leave their camp premises. Any CRPF personnel found in violation of this notice shall do so at their own risk and responsibility. This directive will remain enforced until the CRPF publicly acknowledges and apologises for their barbaric actions in Jiribam."
The Zomi Students' Federation (ZSF) said, "In light of the inhumane actions of the CRPF in Jiribam yesterday, in which 11 of our youths were treacherously murdered, we announce a social boycott of the CRPF. We demand an impartial court-monitored investigation into what can be best described as, 'fake encounter'."
The Hmar Students' Association (HSA) demanded a CBI investigation into the incident and "deployment of neutral peacekeeping forces". Hmars are a part of the larger Kuki-Zo community.
Various Kuki-Zo bodies called for a 12-hour bandh from 6 am on Tuesday.
On the other hand, 13 civil society organisations called for a total shutdown in the five districts of the Imphal Valley on Tuesday evening, protesting the alleged abduction of six people in Jiribam. The shutdown began at 6 pm, and will continue for 24 hours, civil body International Peace and Social Advancement (IPSA) said in a statement.
Tagging PM Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and CM N Biren Singh, Congress's Inner Manipur MP Bimol Akoijam posted on X, "Do whatever you must with all the resources under your command to ensure their safety and freedom from their armed 'Kuki' abductors. God forbid, if anything untoward happens to these innocent women and children, you shall be solely responsible."
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