The number of insurgency-related incidents in Manipur, otherwise sporadic, has substantially gone up in the past five months, data accessed by News18 shows.
The latest incident was an IED blast which took place on Sunday, injuring two Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel.
The development comes ahead of the approaching elections in the north-eastern state, at a time the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) has become a major rallying point between parties contesting the polls. The act gives special powers to the Armed Forces to arrest without warrants and kill in specific situations in certain areas identified by the state as “disturbed”.
Manipur goes to polls in two phases, on February 28 and March 5.
As per available data, between September last year and February this year so far, Manipur witnessed 28 insurgency-related incidents—from IED blasts and throwing of hand grenades to the killing of an Indian Army Colonel, his family and four soldiers, among others.
The data shows in September alone, there were two incidents—one when an IED was seized from a People’s Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK) militant and a militant was killed in a separate incident.
In October, there were five different incidents, two related to seizures and detection of IEDs, and one where a hand grenade was thrown at the house of a political party candidate. There were two other incidents—one on October 10 where four militants were killed by security forces and the other, two days later, where three civilians were killed by insurgents. Both took place in Thoubal district of Manipur.
In November, there were seven incidents, one of which was the tragic killing of 46 Assam Rifles Commanding Officer Col Viplav Tripathi, along with his family and four soldiers. In another incident the same month, one civilian was killed. There were also five IED seizures, recoveries and blasts, which includes the seizure of 197 IED seizures and also a blast.
In December, there were three insurgency-related incidents, including an IED blast and an IED recovery. Five PLA militants were also handed over to the Indian Army by the Myanmar Army.
Last month, there were five incidents—one of which was a hand grenade blast and the other two were related to recovery of hand grenades and an IED. An insurgent was killed by another insurgent outfit and an IED blast took place in Moreh, killing one Assam Rifles jawan and injuring another. This month saw five different incidents. Aside from the blast killing ITBP jawans, 10 insurgents were caught by security forces, abduction of two civilians and two different blasts which did not lead to any casualty.
In November last year, the Ministry of Home Affairs told the Lok Sabha that the northeast saw as many as 187 insurgency-related incidents in 2021 till November 15.
As per this data, Manipur saw the highest number of civilians, security forces and insurgents killed in 2021 among all other northeastern states, at nine, five and 18, respectively. In two years prior to that, which is 2019 and 2020, the numbers were lower.
SITUATION IN MANIPUR
Security sources told News18 that before the recent spate of incidents, which looks to be fueled by the impending state elections, the numbers were on a decline. This is even as Manipur remains the one of the few bastions of active insurgency in the northeast.
A security official attributed the fewer incidents in 2019, 2020 and a large part of 2021 to regular operations and lack of adequate funding for insurgent groups, made worse by the pandemic.
“The recent incidents are just aimed at asserting their presence in the wake of elections by terrorizing electoral candidates and locals rejecting the insurgent groups’ extortion demands, through IED blasts and throwing of hand grenades, etc,” the official said.
A second official said that much of Manipur’s valley based insurgent groups (VBIGs), particularly PLA, earlier had their safe bases in Myanmar, but the situation has changed after the military coup in Myanmar on February 1 last year.
“They are at the receiving end of both the Myanmar Army and the locals of Myanmar’s Chin state. VBIGs lost around 40 cadre till December last year, but the latest attack on a PLA camp by the Chin National Army for People’s Defence Force last month dealt a big blow with the loss of six cadres,” the official said. He added that the NSCN (IM) operating at north Manipur and the Kuki insurgent groups—currently under a Suspension of Operations pact with Indian security forces—also sporadically initiate murders, extortions, which disturb the peace of the area.
AFSPA TURNS INTO A POLITICAL ISSUE
The controversial AFSPA has become a political hot potato ahead of the elections and is dominating discourses in the state at present.
In a recent interview to News18, former chief minister of Manipur Okram Ibobi Singh said AFSPA should be repealed and that the act was indeed withdrawn from seven assembly segments when the Congress was in power. The Congress, in its manifesto, has also promised to urge the Centre to repeal the act if it comes to power.
The BJP had not included the repeal of AFSPA in its manifesto. In an interview to PTI last month, Manipur chief minister N Biren Singh had said that people of Manipur and he wanted the AFSPA to be lifted, but with the Centre’s consent, adding that national security is a top priority.
The Army and the security forces have said the act affords minimum essential protection to members of Armed Forces to ensure fulfilment of constitutional obligations. The security officials quoted above rooted for continuing AFSPA, stating that nearly 90% of the violent incidents in Manipur in the past three years took place from Imphal East and Imphal West, from where AFSPA was de-notified in 2004. They said nearly 72% insurgents were also caught from these districts.
Sanjoy Hazarika, an author and a commentator on issues of the northeast, had earlier told News18 that there are only “few real” insurgencies left in the northeast and most groups are in peace talks with the government or have not been able to sustain an armed movement as public support has withered with growing violence.
He had said it is more of a law and order problem, which is the job of the police and not the Army’s special forces.
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