Manipur: Security Forces Seize Arms And Ammunition In Churachandpur, Tribal Body Demands AFSPA Imposition

Assam Rifles and Manipur Police conducted a search operation in Churachandpur’s Kholmun village and recovered 10 firearms along with several rounds of ammunition.

The arms and ammunition seized in Churachandpur.

Guwahati: A joint operation by the Assam Rifles and the Manipur Police led to the recovery of a huge cache of arms, ammunition, and war-like stores in Manipur's Churachandpur district on Tuesday.

Acting on an intelligence input, Assam Rifles jawans, alongside personnel of Manipur Police, conducted a search operation in Churachandpur’s Kholmun village and recovered 10 firearms along with several rounds of ammunition. The recovery included an M4 assault rifle, a 9 mm carbine, two single-barrel rifles, four 9mm pistols, two improvised mortars, several rounds of live ammunition, and other "war-like" stores. The arms and ammunition were later handed over to the Churachandpur Police, an Assam Rifles press release stated.

On the other hand, the Manipur Police, along with Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) personnel, conducted several search operations in the vulnerable areas of Imphal West, Imphal East, Thoubal, Kakching, Bishnupur, and Churachandpur districts and recovered nine weapons, two pompis (locally made crude machine gun), 10 rounds of live ammunition, eight munitions and three explosives from Churachandpur, Imphal East and Thoubal districts of the state over the past 24 hours, the Manipur Police posted on X (formerly Twitter).

The Manipur Police and CAPF personnel are conducting round-the-clock search operations and naka checkings in vulnerable areas, such as Bishnupur, Thoubal, Imphal West, and Imphal East districts, the post stated.

A total of 131 checkpoints have been erected at several places in the state, both in the hill and valley districts, to prevent miscreants from carrying out any subversive activities. The state police have also detained 1,737 people for breaking the law in different parts of the state during the last two days, it added.

Meanwhile, the Committee on Tribal Unity (COTU), a Kuki body, condemned the alleged repeated attacks on the Kuki-Zo villages by armed miscreants. The COTU also condemned the killing of three tribal villagers of Ireng and Kharam Vaiphei villages in the Kangpokpi district’s Kangchup area by armed miscreants on Tuesday morning.

The tribal body said that if the union home ministry is sincere in its appeal for normalcy to return in the state, it must immediately declare all the valley districts as “disturbed areas” under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA).