Assam Rifles nothing but a bunch of liar: RPF
Source: Hueiyen News Service

Imphal, June 09 2013: The proscribed outfit Revolutionary People's Front (RPF) has come out strongly against the Assam Rifles, calling it a liar.

In a statement issued by its Secretary Publicity Roben Khuman, RPF observed that Assam Rifles is an old paramilitary force created by the British during the Indian pre-independent period.

From the moment of creation onwards, in order to satisfy the British colonial rulers, it had been an armed force that had acted with all its might and prowess during operations carried out by the British in the small territories in the Northeast of India and Manipur as well.

When a collusion of the British and Indian traders created artificial famine, and when women of Manipur waged the second women's war against the British, Assam Rifles was the armed forces that had played major role who indulged in bayonet charges upon the women to suppress the movement.

When India kept Manipur king Budhachandra under house arrest at Shillong in 1949 to forcibly make him sign the merger agreement, a well equipped battalion of Assam Rifles under Colonel Ram Sigh was deployed at the ground near Minuthong so as to unleash widespread genocide in case the people of Manipur would have risen against India.

The 4th Battalion Assam Rifles at Kangla was also meant to be used for any purpose under any condition.

In addition, the AR Inspector General and the Sub Area Commander of the Indian Army Brigadier, E.Habubullah had visited Imphal to study the war condition, the outfit alleged, adding that RPF would like to place to the public to substantiate the fact that human rights violations and tortures by the Assam Rifles is not a recent aberration.

On the question of extra-judicial killings, Assam Rifles cannot cover up their crime.

In the course of counter insurgency operation from 1979 to 2012 in Manipur, Assam Rifles had brutally killed 419 innocent civilians including 10 women and 21 children.

The most dreaded killing spree that had panic stricken anyone who had heard about it, perpetrated by the Assam Rifles had been the Oinam Massacre (1987 Operation Blue Bird carried out by AR at Oinam Village in Senapati District.) During the operation, under the command of Major General Kuketri, 15 civilians were lined up and mercilessly shot to death.

Many were brutally tortured, villages were set ablaze and reduced to ash, several churches and schools were dismantled, many were forced exposed under extreme heat of sunlight on open ground, women were raped and sexually harassed and pregnant women were forced delivered at open ground.

It seems that the Assam Rifles today have forgotten the fact that the Amnesty International wrote seventy-three-page document against the extra judicial executions committed by them during the operation, the statement pointed out.

It went on to recall that during the "Malom Massacre" which occurred on November 2, 2000, Assam Rifles had singled out selectively and brutally massacre 10 civilians.

Among the death, a 62-year old person and an 18-year old teenager, who had won National Child Bravery Award in 1988 were there.

The fact that Irom Chanu Sharmila, who had been heartedly disappointed by the inhuman killing, had been on fasting demanding repeal of AFSPA exemplifies that Assam Rifles had been indulging in extra judicial killing in Manipur.

In 2004, Assam Rifles arrested Thangjam Chanu Manorama (32) from her house on the night of 11 July on the charge of being associated with freedom fighters.

She was brutally gang raped, tortured, stabbed, and shot several times at the private parts on the ground of alleged escape and was killed in the most dehumanizing manner.

Peoples disheartened by this merciless murder had risen up, protested the killing and demanded repealing of AFSPA.

On 15 July, 2004, a dozen of mothers in this land stripped themselves in front of the Assam Rifles Gate at Kangla and shouted protest slogans such as "Rape Us, Kill Us", "Assam Rifles and Indian Army Go Back" .

However, Director General of Assam Rifles told journalists on the sidelines of "Go Green" campaign at the Assam Riffles headquarters in Meghalaya on May 31, 2013 that that his troops had not indulged in any extra judicial killing during counter insurgency operation in the Northeast.

Since the said above incidents had been well known and went International, Assam Rifles or Indian Army can neither deny nor cover up that fact that it had been indulged in killing.

RPF wants only to say that Assam Rifles, a part of the Indian Army is nothing but a Liar, a bunch of Con Artists.

One must not go by the recently coined deceiving phrase "Know Your Army" that Indian Army had used very frequently.

In contrast to it, the Indian security force including Assam Rifles is the enemy of the people.

RPF, therefore, call upon the people to "Know Your Enemy", the statement asserted.

"Lastly, RPF would like to convey to the people that the Assam Rifles are not our friends.

They are the Indian occupational forces invading to subjugate and suppress the communities that had been living together in this territory from the ancient times", it added.

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