Guwahati: Unidentified gunmen attacked three Liangmai Naga villages in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district early Tuesday, leaving a village pastor injured and several houses, vehicles and machinery damaged or burnt.The affected settlements — Tapon Khullen, Tapon Khunou and Makui Pipuram — are located along IT Road, a strategic corridor connecting Naga-inhabited areas in Kangpokpi and Tamenglong.Liangmai village guards, armed with single and double-barrel guns, reportedly engaged the attackers in a bid to defend the settlements.The Makui Village Authority alleged that armed Kuki militants carried out the attacks. However, there was no immediate official confirmation from police on the identity of the attackers.The Chaljang Village Authority has strongly condemned what it described as an “unprovoked and brutal attack” on Chaljang village in the Twilang area of Kangpokpi district. According to the village authority, the hamlet came under heavy assault at around 8:05 am on Sept 1. It alleged that the attack was carried out by an armed group led by NSCN-IM cadres, along with ZUF-K, using bombs, triggering panic among residents and causing damage in the village.The pastor from Tapon Khunjao village sustained bullet injuries to his hand and abdomen while about 30 houses, besides vehicles and other properties and household items, were damaged or set ablaze in the arson. The exact extent of losses is still being assessed.The attack came just a day after three Kuki civilians, including two women, were killed and four others injured in an attack on Teikhang Kuki village in the district. It also followed a series of violent incidents along the same IT Road corridor in recent weeks. On Aug 15, two Liangmai Naga civilians were killed in an early-morning attack on Langka village.On Aug 27, four Liangmai Naga civilians, including a school principal, were killed and one person was injured in another attack. Though Naga organisations accused Kuki militants of carrying it out, no group has officially claimed responsibility.According to reports, at least 17 people from Kuki-Zo and Naga communities have been killed in separate incidents in the Kangpokpi–Tamenglong stretch since May 13, with IT Road emerging as a recurring flashpoint.The approximately 120-km-long Imphal–Tamenglong Road (often called the IT Road) is a strategic hill corridor in Manipur that connects the Imphal valley with Tamenglong district, passing through Kangpokpi.
