Three FIRs registered as police probe firing, detentions and recovery of two bodies amid tension between Tangkhul and Kuki groups.
Imphal: Authorities in Manipur have registered three separate FIRs to investigate a series of violent incidents in the Thawai Kuki Hill Range of the Mapithel Hill area in Ukhrul district that left two people dead and briefly triggered civilian detentions.
According to police, the incidents began on the morning of March 11 when huts located at a poppy cultivation site in the Thawai Kuki Hill Range were reportedly burnt and two Kuki poppy cultivators were detained. Soon after, armed miscreants from Tangkhul and Kuki groups allegedly exchanged gunfire, reportedly using sophisticated weapons.
Amid the firing and scuffle, a few youths went missing. Around the same time, 21 Tangkhul civilians travelling in vehicles were detained at Shangkai village by Kuki volunteers along with local women.
In the early hours of March 12, police and security forces rescued two Kuki civilians earlier detained at Leingangching and handed them over to representatives of Kuki civil society organisations in the presence of the district administration.
The Tangkhul civilians who had been detained were also released and handed over to Tangkhul civil society groups following negotiations.
Later on Thursday morning, security personnel recovered the bodies of two missing persons from a jungle area in Thawai Kuki Hill. Police said the bodies were brought in for necessary legal procedures.
Senior officers have visited the sites, and security forces have launched area domination operations to prevent further escalation. Police urged all communities to maintain restraint as investigations continue under the three registered FIR cases.
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