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A truck driver from West Bengal was killed and a Manipur police constable injured after unidentified gunmen ambushed an escorted goods vehicle on National Highway 202 near TM Kasom village in Manipur’s Ukhrul district, officers said on Friday.

Armed miscreants attacked an escorted goods convoy in Manipur’s Ukhrul“More than 20 goods-laden trucks along with oil tankers had been stranded at Yaingangpokpi in Imphal East district for around 10 days due to the total shutdown imposed by Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM). After receiving security, a convoy of 13 vehicles, including 10 goods-laden trucks and two oil tankers, departed for Ukhrul at around 8 am, and later the unfortunate incident happened,” a senior police officer, requesting anonymity, told HT.

Officers from Litan police station said that at around 9 am, before the ambush, a group of protestors tried to block the convoy on the highway at Shangkai Kuki village. The protest was part of a shutdown called by Kuki Inpi Manipur, an apex Kuki body.

“However, Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel along with other security forces dispersed the mob by firing several rounds of tear gas shells and mock bombs,” an officer said.

He added that at least five Kuki women protestors were injured and more than three goods-laden trucks were partially damaged when security forces dispersed the mob.

Officers said the convoy was on its way when armed miscreants reportedly opened fire from a nearby hilltop at around 10 am on Friday. The incident occurred after the convoy passed Litan police station, officers added.

Police identified the deceased truck driver as Nitish Kumar (57), a resident of West Bengal’s Hooghly district, and the injured police constable as Disingam Maringmei (35), a resident of Sangaiprou Kabui Khul village in Imphal West.

Police said Maringmei was injured when security forces retaliated against the ambush. Maringmei, who was posted at Litan police station, sustained bullet injuries to both knees. He was evacuated to Jawaharlal Institute of Medical Sciences (JNIMS) Hospital in Imphal for treatment.

Hospital authorities said the injured personnel is out of danger.

“Ambushing a goods vehicle and taking the life of a driver, who plays a crucial role in ensuring an uninterrupted supply of essential items across the State, is one of the most cowardly acts and intends to further aggravate the tense situation prevailing in the area,” the statement stated.

The statement further said that a search and cordon operation has started in nearby areas to nab and punish the culprits as per the law of the land.

Amid the Manipur crisis that erupted on May 3, 2023, between Meitei and Kuki-Zo groups, killing over 260 people and displacing more than 60,000, another clash between Naga and Kuki groups erupted in February following a drunken brawl in Litan Sareikhong under Litan police station in Ukhrul district.

Tension remains between the Kuki and Naga communities, and it escalated after twin ambushes carried out in Kangpokpi and Noney districts on May 13 killed four civilians, including three church leaders and one Naga man.

In the aftermath of the twin ambushes, 48 civilians from both communities were taken hostage. On May 15, 14 people from each community were freed. However, according to civil bodies from both communities, 14 Kuki civilians and six Naga civilians are still being held hostage.

Since then, demanding the safe release and rescue of six Naga hostages, the United Naga Council (UNC), a Naga apex body, has imposed an indefinite economic blockade along all three national highways in Manipur, including Imphal-Dimapur (NH-2), Imphal-Silchar via Jiribam (NH-37) and Imphal-Moreh (NH-102).

Besides, Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM), a Kuki apex civil body, also imposed a total shutdown in all Kuki-inhabited areas across Manipur, demanding the release of 14 Kuki hostages and the booking of the culprits involved in the killing of three church leaders in the Kangpokpi ambush incident that occurred on May 13.