TNL decries Ukhrul district administration's 'failure'
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Mungchan Zimik
UKHRUL, Apr 7: The Working Committee of Tangkhul Naga Long (TNL) has decried Ukhrul Deputy Commissioner's "inaction" and "inability" to provide safety and security to the people of the district.
In a statement, the Working Committee of Tangkhul Naga Long (TNL) alleged the Ukhrul district administration has failed to take any decisive action of intervention to curb the violence that gripped the district for the last two months.
It claimed Deputy Commissioner Ashish Das has not taken any action even when Tangkhul Nagas and the people of the district are enduring extreme hardships.
SoO Kuki cadres have attacked Sinakeithei, Thoyee and Sharkaphung. There are not isolated incidents but coordinated attacks. Villagers in these areas are living under constant fear for their lives. Multiple houses and properties have been damaged, yet the attacks continue unchecked and unabated, said the committee.
On April 6, instead of confronting the relentless firing by SoO Kuki cadres and initiating combing operations in Shangkai and Zalenbung, the administration and the State police forces chose to dismantle defensive bunkers erected by village volunteers in Thoyee. But, repeated appeals to dismantle bunkers of SoO Kuki militants in Sinakeithei were ignored, it said.
Movement along NH-202 has been obstructed since March 14, and extortion activity of collecting illegal taxes by SoO Kuki cadres persists openly on the route, it added.
"These are not minor disruptions but clear indicators of a complete breakdown of law and order under the watch of the district administration and the State Government," it said.
"It is both ironic and telling that on 6th April 2026, the Deputy Commissioner himself was reportedly threatened at gunpoint by Kuki cadres under SoO along NH-202. The very lawlessness that he failed to confront has now reached him directly. If the head of the district is not safe, what hope remains for ordinary citizens who have been enduring this violence for months? In this same regard, what course of action has the Deputy Commissioner taken or is planning to take?" asked the committee.
Furthermore, the refusal by the Deputy Commissioner to impose Section 144 on March 31 even as Ukhrul town had descended into chaos, further demonstrated a shocking lack of judgment and accountability. The excuse of insufficient forces cannot justify allowing a district headquarters to spiral into disorder, the committee said.
"All events that have transpired leads to the pertinent question. Is the Deputy Commissioner making these decisions on his own discretion or is he being forced to be a puppet and is simply executing orders from the Ministry of Home Affairs? At this point, it is plain for all to see that the MHA is complicit with the Kuki SoO groups and have made unequivocally clear their intention to destabilize Manipur and to undermine the Naga cause for sovereignty and their rights to their land," the committee asserted.
If the Deputy Commissioner is unable or unwilling to restore law and order, ensure free movement on NH-202, dismantle all illegal infrastructure of Kuki cadres under SoO, and act impartially in the interest of all citizens, then he has no moral authority to continue in office, the committee said.
The patience of the people is not infinite and should not be tested beyond the limit, it cautioned.
UKHRUL, Apr 7: The Working Committee of Tangkhul Naga Long (TNL) has decried Ukhrul Deputy Commissioner's "inaction" and "inability" to provide safety and security to the people of the district.
In a statement, the Working Committee of Tangkhul Naga Long (TNL) alleged the Ukhrul district administration has failed to take any decisive action of intervention to curb the violence that gripped the district for the last two months.
It claimed Deputy Commissioner Ashish Das has not taken any action even when Tangkhul Nagas and the people of the district are enduring extreme hardships.
SoO Kuki cadres have attacked Sinakeithei, Thoyee and Sharkaphung. There are not isolated incidents but coordinated attacks. Villagers in these areas are living under constant fear for their lives. Multiple houses and properties have been damaged, yet the attacks continue unchecked and unabated, said the committee.
On April 6, instead of confronting the relentless firing by SoO Kuki cadres and initiating combing operations in Shangkai and Zalenbung, the administration and the State police forces chose to dismantle defensive bunkers erected by village volunteers in Thoyee. But, repeated appeals to dismantle bunkers of SoO Kuki militants in Sinakeithei were ignored, it said.
Movement along NH-202 has been obstructed since March 14, and extortion activity of collecting illegal taxes by SoO Kuki cadres persists openly on the route, it added.
"These are not minor disruptions but clear indicators of a complete breakdown of law and order under the watch of the district administration and the State Government," it said.
"It is both ironic and telling that on 6th April 2026, the Deputy Commissioner himself was reportedly threatened at gunpoint by Kuki cadres under SoO along NH-202. The very lawlessness that he failed to confront has now reached him directly. If the head of the district is not safe, what hope remains for ordinary citizens who have been enduring this violence for months? In this same regard, what course of action has the Deputy Commissioner taken or is planning to take?" asked the committee.
Furthermore, the refusal by the Deputy Commissioner to impose Section 144 on March 31 even as Ukhrul town had descended into chaos, further demonstrated a shocking lack of judgment and accountability. The excuse of insufficient forces cannot justify allowing a district headquarters to spiral into disorder, the committee said.
"All events that have transpired leads to the pertinent question. Is the Deputy Commissioner making these decisions on his own discretion or is he being forced to be a puppet and is simply executing orders from the Ministry of Home Affairs? At this point, it is plain for all to see that the MHA is complicit with the Kuki SoO groups and have made unequivocally clear their intention to destabilize Manipur and to undermine the Naga cause for sovereignty and their rights to their land," the committee asserted.
If the Deputy Commissioner is unable or unwilling to restore law and order, ensure free movement on NH-202, dismantle all illegal infrastructure of Kuki cadres under SoO, and act impartially in the interest of all citizens, then he has no moral authority to continue in office, the committee said.
The patience of the people is not infinite and should not be tested beyond the limit, it cautioned.