Guwahati: The Army on Thursday identified the man killed two days ago during a security operation in Manipur’s Churachandpur district as a United Kuki National Army (UKNA) cadre, contradicting claims by local residents and Kuki groups that the deceased was a civilian.In a statement, the defence PRO for Manipur, Nagaland and Southern Arunachal Pradesh said troops of the Army and Assam Rifles launched an intelligence-based operation in the Henglep subdivision on Tuesday following inputs on the movement of UKNA cadres in the area.“Acting on precise intelligence regarding the movement of UKNA cadres, the operation was executed in treacherous terrain and inclement weather conditions. A firefight ensued when the troops approached the hideout. The intense firefight resulted in neutralisation of one insurgent, while other insurgents escaped,” the PRO said.The PRO further said the joint operation dismantled active insurgent infrastructure in a remote sector of the state and dealt a blow to insurgent activities in the state. “Subsequent combing operations led to the destruction of fortified bunkers and recovery of a sizeable cache of arms, ammunition and warlike store…,” the PRO added.The official identification of the deceased as a UKNA cadre comes amid a growing controversy over the encounter. Residents and Kuki organisations had earlier claimed that the person killed was a civilian and not a member of any insurgent group.Manipur Police on Wednesday had separately acknowledged receiving information about the killing, had confirmed only that one suspected militant had died during the operation. Police officials, however, had stopped short of identifying the outfit to which the deceased allegedly belonged.The defence ministry’s statement is the first official attribution of the slain individual to UKNA, a Kuki insurgent outfit that is not part of the Suspension of Operations (SoO) arrangement signed between the Centre, the Manipur govt and several Kuki militant groups.
