Chandel: Four KYKL, PREPAK cadres held near Myanmar border

Security forces have arrested four alleged active cadres of the banned outfits Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL) and People's Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK) in Manipur's Chandel district, close to the India-Myanmar border.

The joint operation by Chandel district police and the 43 Assam Rifles was carried out on Tuesday, November 10, in the general area of Border Pillars 48 and 50, acting on intelligence inputs, India Today NE reported.

Who was arrested

Two of those held are allegedly linked to KYKL:

• Kangujam Amit alias Chumthang, 23, of Leimapokpam Mayai Leikai in Bishnupur district
• Khonthoujam Diren Meitei alias Khanganba, 31, of Takyel Kolom Leikai in Imphal West district

The other two, both 18, are allegedly associated with PREPAK:

• Leimapokpam Binanta Singh alias Meitei Ngakpa, of Zou Veng in Churachandpur district
• Pebam Sanathoi Singh alias Thoujal, of Thoubal Houkha Maning Leikai in Thoubal district

All four were handed over to Chakpikarong police station for legal action. Chakpikarong is a sub-division in the southern part of Chandel district, along the international border.

Police have not said whether any weapons were recovered or what specific charges the four will face.

Context

KYKL and PREPAK are Imphal valley-based armed groups banned by the Centre under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Both are believed to maintain camps across the border in Myanmar, and the forested stretch of Chandel and Tengnoupal districts along the frontier is a key route for movement of cadres, arms and drugs.

Security forces in Manipur have stepped up operations against valley-based and hill-based armed groups in recent months, including searches for weapons looted from police armouries since ethnic violence broke out in May 2023. That the arrested men come from four different districts, and that two are just 18, points to continued recruitment by the proscribed outfits.

The border pillars where the arrests took place lie along the Manipur-Myanmar boundary, where the Free Movement Regime has been curtailed and fencing work is under way. Officials say the porous terrain still allows cadres to slip across. No official statement on the operation had been issued by the Assam Rifles or Manipur Police headquarters at the time of writing, and NEInsider will update this story if more details emerge.