Firing at Songjang village in Kangpokpi; no one hurt, police say

Armed men opened fire on Songjang, a Kuki village also known as Songjang Pakhang Khul, in Manipur's Kangpokpi district on Saturday, two independent news reports said on Sunday. No one was hurt and no damage to property has been reported.

Northeast Now and India Today NE both placed the incident at Songjang along the Imphal-Tamei road, under the Chalwa police station. Their accounts agree on the location and the absence of casualties, but they differ on when the firing took place.

What the police account says

India Today NE, quoting a senior police officer who asked not to be named, said the attack happened at about 5 pm on Saturday, November 7, at the village, which lies about 15 km north of Chalwa police station.

According to that account, the armed group is suspected to belong to a Naga militant outfit and launched the attack from neighbouring Thonglang Akutpa village. Personnel of the Manipur Rifles and the Indian Reserve Battalion fired back, and the exchange lasted around 30 minutes before the attackers withdrew, the officer said.

Police have not publicly named the outfit. Northeast Now reported that Kangpokpi police were sent to the village to calm the situation and that no arrests had been made in connection with the firing.

Village committee's statement

The Twilang Area Core Committee, in a statement issued from Twilang Lhang and carried by Northeast Now, condemned the shooting and accused cadres of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Isak-Muivah), or NSCN-IM, of carrying it out while posing as Thonglang Akutpa Volunteers.

That accusation has not been independently confirmed, and police, in the India Today NE report, spoke only of a suspected Naga militant group. NSCN-IM has not issued a public response in the reports available on Sunday.

The committee called the firing the second targeted provocation against Kuki civilians in recent weeks and asked security forces, the state government and central agencies to investigate and arrest those responsible. It also sought a lasting deployment of security personnel at Songjang Pakang and nearby settlements, and urged residents to stay calm.

Northeast Now described the firing as having taken place early on Saturday morning, rather than in the evening. NEInsider is reporting both timings until an official written account settles the point.

Wider security backdrop

The incident comes days after a high-level security meeting of the Manipur government on November 3 warned that groups found to have attacked civilians could be declared unlawful by the state Cabinet, India Today NE reported. The meeting also resolved to move against such groups under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

Songjang sits on a sensitive stretch of the Imphal-Tamei road, which links the Imphal valley with Tamenglong district through the hills of Kangpokpi. Even brief exchanges of fire in this area tend to raise alarm, because the sound of gunshots can quickly be taken as a sign of a wider attack.

As of Sunday afternoon, police had not announced any arrest linked to the Songjang firing itself, and there was no official casualty list beyond the consistent report that no one was injured.