Imphal, March 19 2009: Owning responsibility for the killing of an Officer of the 12 MLI, Lt Satvir Singh and injuring of two personnel yesterday at Oinam Mamang Khumannung, the proscribed People's Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK) has claimed that the ambush was carried out by its Red Army unit under PREPAK CO-2. In a press statement, the outfit's department of Publicity and Propaganda Secretary in-charge, Aheiba Angom said that the attack was carried out as part of the outfit's continuous routine operation to drive out the Indian Army from the soil of Manipur.

It said that the ambush was partially successful due to the n earness of the camp of the army while adding that it could have been successful if the incident had occurred at some open arena.

While claiming that no injuries have been suffered by the Red Armies during the encounter yesterday, the statement added that the Red Armies who took part in the ambush have reached their base camp unharmed.

The PREPAK statement also refutes the reports which appeared in local dailies published from Imphal that links the attackers of the house of the EE O Ibopishak and the ambush party as the same.

The statement clarified that the attackers of the house and the ambush party of the Red Army were not related in any way.

Meanwhile, the statement further said that the outfit will not register its condemnation over the recent attack on Congress workers while also clarifying that the Congress workers under attack have not been included in the lists released by the party earlier.

It re-asserted however that there is no change of the party's stand that it will lay hands upon the close associates of Chief Minister O Ibobi if not the incident of extra-judicial killings are not stopped by the commandos as well as the security forces.

It said that the party may strike anytime to the concerned persons in case any extra-judicial killing incident happens while also appealing all concerns to stand openly against the extra-judicial killing rights sanctioned by the Ibobi led government.