Tensions flared across Manipur today following separate violent incidents that left four people dead. The fresh casualties triggered widespread public anger, culminating in intense demonstrations outside Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh’s official bungalow in the state capital.
In the most severe incident, armed militants ambushed a group of villagers who had ventured into the hills to collect firewood near the peripheral border of Imphal East and Kuki-dominated Kangpokpi districts.
At least three firewood collectors were shot dead, several others were injured, and three individuals remain missing. Separately, another 24-year-old man succumbed to bullet injuries following clashes, stone-pelting, and gunfire during a music event at Khangabok in Thoubal district.
Following the hill ambush, agitated locals brought the victims' bodies to Imphal and placed them directly outside the main gate of the Chief Minister's residence in Babupara, demanding justice and a swift end to the ongoing ethnic conflict.
Security forces deployed tear gas shells to disperse the surging crowd before moving the bodies to local hospitals. Authorities have subsequently cordoned off major routes leading to the VIP zone and tightened security across Imphal to prevent further escalation.