The Kuki-Zo Council alleged that the youths were injured in a bombing and armed attack on Leilon Munlui village and questioned the decision to shift them to Imphal for treatment.
BY PC Bureau
June 15, 2926:Tensions flared in Manipur’s capital on Monday after a large crowd gathered outside the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS), where three injured Kuki-Zo youths were undergoing treatment following an alleged attack on their village in Kangpokpi district.
Security personnel intervened to disperse the protesters amid concerns over the safety of the injured youths, whose evacuation to Imphal has sparked fresh controversy in the conflict-hit state.
The three victims — 15-year-old Genlenmang Vaiphei, 20-year-old Lunliandou Vaiphei and 18-year-old Paogoulal Chongloi — sustained injuries in what the Kuki-Zo Council (KZC) described as a bombing and armed assault on Leilon Munlui village at around 6 am on June 15. The KZC alleged that the attack was carried out by the NSCN-IM and its proxy outfit, ZUF-K. There was no immediate response from the groups to the allegations.
RIMS hospital, Imphal,turning to a war zone. People protesting against 3 injured kuki militants being brought for treatment.
Kuki militants had mutilated and butchered 6 Naga civilians after they were abducted from Leilon Vaiphei village.
& HM Amit Shah is busy breaking TMC. pic.twitter.com/sTSEnSa3mU— KennyZ (@KennyZ77) June 15, 2026
Paogoulal Chongloi is a young footballer who has represented Mohun Bagan Football Club.
In a strongly worded statement, the Kuki-Zo Council expressed concern over the security of the injured patients at RIMS, saying the gathering of crowds at the hospital had created an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty.
“Given the hostile atmosphere and reports of large crowds gathering around the hospital, there are legitimate concerns for their safety and well-being. No injured civilian receiving life-saving treatment should ever have to fear intimidation, harassment, or further harm inside a medical institution,” the KZC said.
The organisation also questioned the decision to shift the victims to RIMS in Imphal, arguing that Kuki-Zo people have, for years, considered the valley unsafe amid the ethnic conflict.
“What makes the situation particularly troubling is that the Central Forces evacuated the injured Kuki-Zo victims to RIMS in Imphal despite fully knowing that, for more than three years, the valley has remained effectively inaccessible and unsafe for Kuki-Zo people,” the statement said.
According to the KZC, transporting critically injured victims across the buffer zone into an area where tensions remain high exposed them to additional risks at a time when they should have received maximum protection and care.
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The council urged authorities to immediately shift the injured youths to a more secure medical facility and said the episode underscored the need for stronger constitutional safeguards for the Kuki-Zo community.
It argued that the incident reinforced its long-standing demand for a separate administration for Kuki-Zo people.
“If even wounded civilians cannot access medical care without security concerns, it demonstrates how fragile and untenable the present arrangement has become,” the KZC said, adding that the incident strengthened its call for a constitutionally protected Union Territory to safeguard the community’s rights, security and future.
The council condemned the alleged attack as part of what it described as a continuing pattern of violence targeting the Kuki-Zo community. It claimed that since March 11 this year, at least 14 Kuki-Zo people, including three pastors, had been killed and more than six villages set ablaze in attacks allegedly involving NSCN-IM and ZUF-K.
The KZC also expressed condolences over the deaths of six Naga hostages and reiterated its appeal to the Government of India for an urgent political solution to the ongoing crisis in Manipur.
