Pulling the strings to block the highways KIM : The willing partner
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The writ of those pulling the strings or controlling the remote control certainly extends far and wide and in doing so the mischief they are up to must be obvious to all. On May 13 Manipur woke up to the disturbing news of three Church elders or leaders of the Thadou tribe being killed while they were on their way back to Kangpokpi from Churachandpur via the German/Tiger road. To any sane man, the geography of the place where the three men were killed and the reality of the surrounding areas would have helped in zeroing in on the men who pulled the trigger of the gun that killed the three Church elders, but the hand behind the remote control made sure that the finger of accusation fell on the NSCN (IM) and the ZUF (Kamson group) and the Kuki Inpi, Manipur was the perfect tool to carry out their future course of action. And the future course of action did come soon, for as soon as news of the assassination spread, a number of Naga men and women were picked up from Leilon Vaiphei village in Kangpokpi district. Reports coming in say that the Naga people were on their way to a place via Leilon Vaiphei to attend a wedding when they were waylaid and taken captive. Of the Naga people who were abducted, the women have been set free but six Naga men are still in the custody of the Kuki militants. In retaliation, Naga people of Senapati captured at least 16 Kuki folks and have kept them as hostage since then. This is where KIM stepped in, being used by the hand that navigates the remote control, and imposed the highway blockade at Kangpokpi leaving hundreds of trucks stranded. Not to be outdone, the United Naga Council has also gone ahead and imposed an inter-district economic blockade with immediate effect. This is what is clear at the moment and another point that has also emerged is the anxiety and the apprehension that the worst could have befallen the six Naga men if one goes by what the freed Naga women have had to say, that is the sound of gunfire they heard while they were being taken through the hills in captivity. On the other hand, information that has come through says that the Kuki people are still in captivity and alive. The last word is important for it is the fate of the hostages that is keeping Manipur on tenterhooks and this is where the demand of some Naga organisations to show proofs that the six Naga men in captivity are still alive, gains credence. And what is the Government doing in the meantime ? Brief reports that have come in say that crack commando units of the CRPF and other Central forces have started combing the hills to secure the release of the Naga men and till the time this commentary is being written down, this is the only information that has been received. Even as information is hard to come by, the highway blockade imposed by KIM has been extended by yet another 48 hours (that is from May 18).
The valid question at this point of time is, what has made KIM so sure that the assassination of the three Thadou Church leaders was the handiwork of the NSCN (IM) orf the ZUF ? A Naga armed group carrying out a clinical ambush or assassination in an area which is Kuki dominated is a line of conjecture that only those with vested interest can conjure up and to many in Manipur this is seen as an extension of the typical narratives the Kuki people have been spinning out since the evening of May 3, 2023. It also stands that the six Naga men and the 14 Kuki people in captivity do not appear to be in any way connected with the assassination of the three Thadou Church leaders and this again underlines the point that it is always the innocent, the people who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time who end up as victims of a devilish agenda at work. Not that sanity would prevail in the minds of those calling the shots in the latest round of stand off and it is a sort of a tragedy that KIM has also allowed itself to be used by the hand that toys around with the remote control. At the same time it is also amazing to see that the great Indian military has not been able to do anything of substance even days after the hostage drama unfolded.
The valid question at this point of time is, what has made KIM so sure that the assassination of the three Thadou Church leaders was the handiwork of the NSCN (IM) orf the ZUF ? A Naga armed group carrying out a clinical ambush or assassination in an area which is Kuki dominated is a line of conjecture that only those with vested interest can conjure up and to many in Manipur this is seen as an extension of the typical narratives the Kuki people have been spinning out since the evening of May 3, 2023. It also stands that the six Naga men and the 14 Kuki people in captivity do not appear to be in any way connected with the assassination of the three Thadou Church leaders and this again underlines the point that it is always the innocent, the people who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time who end up as victims of a devilish agenda at work. Not that sanity would prevail in the minds of those calling the shots in the latest round of stand off and it is a sort of a tragedy that KIM has also allowed itself to be used by the hand that toys around with the remote control. At the same time it is also amazing to see that the great Indian military has not been able to do anything of substance even days after the hostage drama unfolded.