Six of Manipur extremist group killed in Myanmar, say officials

They had tried to avoid fighting on behalf of junta in neighbouring country

August 12, 2021 02:47 pm | Updated 02:47 pm IST - GUWAHATI:

At least six members of a Manipur extremist group have been killed in a factional fight in Myanmar, officials said.

The decision of some cadre to desert with weapons led to the infighting in which “six to eight” members of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) were killed and three others injured, a spokesperson of a security agency confirmed.

The incident happened on August 10 near the Nanyang Wakathan camp of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Khaplang-Yung Aung) in the Sagaing region of Myanmar. The camp is across Pangsau Pass in the Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh.

“We confirmed the deaths with the family members of three of the cadre killed in the factional fight. The three were from Kakching and Thoubal districts of Manipur,” the spokesperson said.

According to intelligence officials keeping tabs on the northeast extremist groups, trouble had been brewing within the PLA for some time because of pressure from the Myanmar Army to either pay for lying low in the country or join the soldiers in fighting the pro-democracy forces.

The PLA cadre, short of money because of their inability to extort in India, were being pressured to fight the People’s Defence Force, the armed wing of Myanmar’s National Unity Government in exile.

“The PLA launched a manhunt to bring back the deserters, which led to the gunfight. The bodies of the slain extremists were buried in Myanmar,” an intelligence official said.

The extremists killed were identified as self-styled Major Boycha, Leimba, Angamba, Tanthouba, Tomcha and Suresh.

Members of the PLA and other extremist outfits of the northeast have been paying the NSCN (K-YA) a hefty sum annually for accommodation at its camps.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.