Repeated attacks in Ukhrul, Kamjong and Kangpokpi, allegations of delayed reinforcement and the recent transfer of the Kamjong SP raise troubling questions about civilian protection, command accountability and the state’s response to the Naga–Kuki-Zo conflict in Manipur
BY PC Bureau
October 19, 2026: More than three years after ethnic violence tore through Manipur, the state’s hill districts are witnessing another disturbing cycle of killings, armed attacks and arson. Villages have come under fire, homes have been reduced to ashes, civilians have been killed or forced to flee, and community representatives have repeatedly questioned whether security forces are doing enough to protect vulnerable settlements.
The question is no longer simply why violence continues. It is also whether the state’s extensive security deployment is translating into effective protection on the ground.
From Chassad and other parts of Kamjong to villages in Kangpokpi and Ukhrul, reports of attacks have been accompanied by allegations that reinforcements arrived late, that security personnel failed to prevent the destruction of homes, or that forces stationed nearby were unable to stop armed groups from operating. These allegations require independent investigation. But their recurrence makes it imperative for the government to explain how security arrangements are functioning—and why civilians continue to pay the price.
The latest escalation has brought the issue into sharper focus. On October 18, the Manipur government transferred Kamjong Superintendent of Police Tholu Rocky with immediate effect, a day after a 36-year-old man was killed and four others were injured in an attack in Chassad. The government assigned him to the post of additional director at the Manipur Police Training College, while IPS officer Jay Barrage was named SP-in-charge of Kamjong. The timing prompted protests by Naga women and criticism from local representatives and civil society organisations. The government’s stated order did not establish why the transfer was made or whether it was directly connected to the violence. However, it is widely known that Kamjong police did little to prevent the arson and gunfire, which continued for hours.
Chassad: Violence at the centre of the security question
Happening now :
Chassad village under attacked by NSCN IM. Just adjacent to Chassad village is manipur police station, IRB outpost and ASSAM RIFLE battalion. How could this happened in broad day light? @Spearcorps @adgpi @ACLEDINFO @HMOIndia @manipur_police @the_hindu @ANI https://t.co/qvN4AP2l2K
— Mike Lalneo Haokip (@miketlhkip) October 17, 2026
Chassad, a Kuki-Zo village in Naga-majority Kamjong district, has emerged as a focal point of the latest escalation. On October 9–10, an operation by civil police, the Indian Reserve Battalion and the Border Security Force to demolish alleged illegal bunkers near Chassad police station was followed by firing and clashes. A Kuki woman, Domkhonei Touthang, died after being hit by bullets during the exchange. Reports also described attacks on Naga settlements, casualties among village guards and the burning of houses. The scale and sequence of events have been reported differently by various sources, underlining the need for a verified official account.
The violence did not end there. On October 15, Hatneikim Haokip was killed in an ambush while travelling with her husband and another couple between Molnoi and Phaikoh. Her husband was injured, while the other couple was reported missing in the immediate aftermath. On October 17, another suspected militant attack in Chassad killed a man and injured four others. By October 18, more than 30 Kuki-Zo homes were reported to have been torched since the weekend, forcing residents to flee.
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When violence repeatedly erupts around a police station and a security operation, the public is entitled to ask what preventive measures were in place, how quickly forces responded, and whether intelligence about possible retaliation was acted upon. The proximity of a police station, however, does not by itself establish that personnel had the capacity or opportunity to prevent every attack. That assessment requires an accurate timeline of alerts, deployments, orders and action taken.
The Manipur Government’s decision to transfer Tholu Rocky has created a second, distinct controversy. Kamjong MLA Leishiyo Keishing questioned the decision, arguing that the officer had been trying to prevent and control violence and that transferring him was unfair. Naga women also protested the move, while the Poumai Naga Officers’ Association urged the government to revoke the order and cautioned against allegations against individual officers without evidence. These are the positions of the respective political and civil society actors, not an established finding about the reasons for the transfer.
Kangpokpi: Attacks despite security deployments
The concerns extend beyond Kamjong. In Chawangkining, a Liangmai Naga village in Kangpokpi district, an attack began late on September 15 and continued into the early hours of September 16. Two houses were reportedly burned. The reported account said CRPF troops stationed in the village retaliated and that the exchange of fire continued until reinforcement arrived around 5 am.
The account raises a precise operational question: if CRPF personnel were stationed in the village, what prevented the attack and arson from being stopped earlier? The reported response and arrival of reinforcements should be examined against the sequence of firing, the location of the troops and the risks faced by civilians. The fact that security personnel eventually retaliated does not remove the need to investigate how two houses were burned during the incident.
A similar concern emerged in the Taphou Kuki–Matanmai Naga border area in August. A CRPF sub-inspector posted at an outpost in Matanmai was wounded by a bullet amid crossfire between the two sides. The violence included reports of a house being set on fire at Taphou Kuki and further damage in Mareimei. The incident illustrates the danger to both villagers and personnel when armed confrontations spread through settlements close to security deployments. .
Other incidents in Kangpokpi have included reported attacks on Naga villages, burning of houses and ambushes on village volunteers. In early October, a Naga village volunteer was killed and two others injured in an alleged ambush between Makui and Tapon. The incident was reported to have occurred around 15 kilometres northeast of Chalwa Police Station, making it a case of insecurity in the wider police jurisdiction rather than one demonstrably close to the station itself.
This distinction matters. A force cannot be judged solely by whether an incident occurred within a district it covers. But repeated attacks in a known vulnerable belt should prompt questions about patrol patterns, early-warning systems, coordination with village authorities and the speed at which reinforcements can reach threatened settlements.
Ukhrul and the wider hill belt
The October escalation also spread across parts of Ukhrul, Kamjong and Kangpokpi. Reporting on the violence of October 9–10 described multiple clashes, deaths and arson incidents across the hill districts. In Ukhrul, a man was reportedly shot dead between Mahadeva and Toloi along the Imphal–Ukhrul road, while other reports described attacks on Naga settlements and village volunteers in the wider region.
Earlier incidents have also raised concerns about the safety of settlements near security posts in hill districts of Manipur. In July, a reported attack at Huimin Thana in Kamjong left at least 17 homes burned, according to local reporting. The account placed the affected area about 600 metres from an E Company platoon post and near Huimine Police Station. Naga village-guard sources blamed Kuki militants, but that attribution was not independently established. The proximity makes the case important for scrutiny of the security response, although it cannot alone establish what personnel knew or could have done.
In July, two people were injured in an attack at Thingkhongjang in Kangpokpi, including an eight-year-old girl, and a house was set on fire. Reports placed a CRPF company nearby and said Assam Rifles personnel assisted in evacuating the injured. Community representatives alleged the involvement of Naga armed groups. Again, the claims about responsibility require independent corroboration; the central operational question is how quickly civilians received protection and medical assistance.
In each case, the Manipur government should provide a factual account of the sequence of events. How many personnel were deployed? Were they at fixed posts or on patrol? When were they alerted? Were reinforcements requested, and when did they arrive? Were roads blocked, communications disrupted or personnel constrained by the risk of crossfire? Without such details, accusations and official denials can simply harden the mistrust between communities.
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