New bunkers worry Meetei villagers, seek intervention
Source: Chronicle News Service

Imphal, June 11 2023: Stating that new bunkers are being set up in Terakhongsangbi area at a distance of about one kilometre from a proper Meetei village, residents of Terakhongsangbi ap-pealed to the authority concerned to take up security measures to avoid any fresh attack on the village.

During a visit to the village on Sunday, local residents said that they set up bunkers to keep vigil against any attack on the Meetei village following the violence that broke out on May 3 after a tribal solidarity march organised by ATSUM turned violent in Churachandpur district.

On May 11 morning around 6, they received information of large number of villagers of Monghat and Phungadong along with well-armed Kuki militants coming to-wards Terakhongsangbi.

Soon, the villagers gathered only to receive gunshots from the Kuki villagers and militants.

New bunkers worry Meetei villagers, seek intervention

They also took out their license guns and retaliated.

Soon, Bishnupur district commandoes entered the village resulting in a fierce gunfight, in which a commando was killed and some others injured.

Since then, the Kuki militants have been firing shots towards the village intermittently.

The government had identified Terakhongsangbi as a hot zone and a CRPF team is guarding the village by setting up a bunker.

Even though there is a CRPF bunker guard-ing the village, the Kuki militants shifted their bunker from the hills to the foothills and set up around 10 new bunkers at a distance of just one kilometre from the Meetei Though the villagers raised the matter with the CRPF personnel deployed there, they assured that nothing will happen and asked the villagers not to panic.

Meetei residents of Terakhongsangbi, who went to offer prayer at the local Laibung of Ibudhou Thangjing a few days back, were fired upon by the Kuki militants.

Moreover, a team of villagers, who went out to repair power lines, was also shot upon by the Kuki militants.

Despite these incidents, the CRPP personnel posted are yet to launch crackdown against the perpetrators, they lamented.

The Meetei villagers are up-holding the instruction of the government and securi-ty forces by refraining from any activities and hoping for reconciliation for old time's sake, they said while calling for restoring peace through reconciliation by forgiving and forgetting violent ac-tivities committed by some unrestrained youths.

However, the Kuki mili-tants are taking advantage of the peace gestures of the Meetei villagers and setting up new bunkers near the village and firing shots ev-ery night, the villagers said while drawing attention of the government to deploy additional forces to defend the village.

So far, the Meetei residents of Terakhongsangbi are restraining themselves but lack of security measures from the government could result in unwanted incidents, they cautioned.

According to president of Terakhongsangbi Women's Welfare Association, the Kuki militants are setting up new bunkers near the village even today and yet the CRPF per-sonnel deployed there are not trying to stop them.

The villagers are mostly farmers and losing one month in this monsoon season will hit them hard, she said while demand-mg the government to restore peace at the earliest.

She also blamed the government for allowing the violence to con-tinue for over a month.

Village guards keep vigil at Kangvai area CCPUR: Large numbers of village guards are keeping strict vigil day and night at Kangvai area under Churachandpur district to thwart attacks from the warring community.

When this correspondent visited the 'front-line' area at Kangvai bordering Bishnupur dis-trict on Sunday, many village guards armed with SBBL guns and tribal muskets were seen guarding the village.

Talking to this correspondent, a village guard, who refused to be named, informed that there had been attacks from different direction by large numbers of armed persons guided by police commandos.

However, the attackers retreated after the village guards returned fire, the village guard said adding that they have to be extra vigilant round the dock as they do not know when another attack would happen.

The village guard also said that they will go on with the fight until getting separate administration.