Representative image. File
| Photo Credit: ANI
Unidentified armed miscreants killed three Meitei civilians and injured three others from the community on Monday (October 19, 2026) morning, triggering protests across the Imphal Valley.
Security forces personnel fired tear gas shells to disperse a mob, which left the bodies of two victims at the gate of Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh’s official bungalow in Imphal’s Babupara area. The police later transported the bodies to a hospital.
Protesters blocked arterial roads in Imphal, demanding that the government take steps to prevent further attacks.
According to reports, a group of 16 people went to collect firewood at Nongshum, a hilly area near the border between the Meitei-majority Imphal East and the Kuki-dominated Kangpokpi districts. One of the injured said they were loading firewood on a vehicle when they came under attack.
The deceased were identified as Arubam Ronil (35), Lairenlakpam Inaobi (44) and Kshetrimayum Sushil (32). The bodies of the two who died on the spot were left outside the CM’s bungalow.
The Chief Minister visited the injured at an Imphal hospital. He met members of their families and assured that the government would bear all medical expenses for the injured.
Later in the day, he chaired a security meeting with the State’s home minister Konthoujam Govindas and top administrative, police, Army and paramilitary officers. He condemned the killing and directed officials to strengthen security measures in vulnerable areas.
Deputy Chief Minister Nemcha Kipgen also condemned the attack and urged law enforcement agencies and the administration to act swiftly to bring the perpetrators to justice. “I appeal to all citizens to maintain calm, reject rumours, and refrain from retaliatory violence. Manipur has suffered enough, and our people deserve peace and security,” she said.
The Meitei Heritage Society condemned the Nongshum killings and called upon the government to take “immediate, demonstrable exemplary action to arrest the perpetrators and swift prosecution” and establish accountability for any security lapses.
The last major attack targeting Meiteis took place on April 7, when two children—one aged five years and the other five months old—were killed in a bomb hurled at their home in Bishnupur district’s Tronglaobi.
Lethal brawl
The Nongshum killings followed the death of 24-year-old Thokchom Rakesh, who succumbed to a double-barrel gunshot after a brawl reportedly between Meitei and Pangal (Muslim) communities during a musical concert at 11 p.m. on Sunday. The incident occurred in the Khangabok area of Thoubal district.
Officials said on Monday that District Magistrate Yumnam Robita imposed a prohibitory order on movement in and around the affected area. “The cause of the incident is still under investigation,” a district police officer said.
Three other individuals, injured in the incident, were undergoing treatment. “We are trying to ensure that the incident does not snowball into a communal clash,” the officer said, neither confirming nor denying reports of some houses having been torched after the man’s death.
About 40 minutes after the Thoubal incident, a blast near the Singjamei police station in Imphal West district injured three Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel stationed in the area. They were identified as C. Poonambam (58), Ramesh Kumar (57) and Pabitra Kumar Jena (56).
No organisation has claimed responsibility for the blast. The last bomb attack was on October 8 in Imphal East district, in which a CRPF constable was injured.
Published – October 19, 2026 02:10 pm IST
