Security personnel on Monday (June 15, 2026) wielded batons and fired tear gas shells to disperse a mob that gathered outside the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Manipur capital Imphal to oppose the treatment being given in the hospital to three Kuki persons injured in an attack.

Officials in the conflict-scarred State said the three were injured in a gunfight at a place between Leilon Vaiphei and Konsakhul villages in Kangpokpi district at about 6 a.m. The gunfight continued for about 30 minutes before the security forces reached the spot.

The Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM), an apex body of the Kuki group of tribes, blamed the attack on the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (NSCN) and its “proxy”, the Kamson faction of the Zeliangrong United Front. The NSCN is also known as the Isak-Muivah faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland.

A crowd gathered outside the RIMS after receiving news that the security forces had taken the three injured Kuki persons there for treatment. The crowd opposed the treatment of the trio, claiming they were extremists, and shouted slogans against the security forces for “transporting” them to the RIMS.

Kuki organisations, however, claimed that the injured — teenagers Genlengmang Vaiphei and Paogoulal, and 20-year-old Lunliandaw Vaiphei — were students who served as village volunteers.

Reacting to the protests, the Leimakhong Area Chief’s Organisation (in the Kuki-dominated Kangpokpi district) urged authorities to ensure that they received medical care in a safe and secure environment.

The KIM also expressed concern about the safety of the injured trio and said attacks against civilians were unacceptable, inhuman, and a direct threat to the rule of law. “The people of Leilon Vaiphei and the surrounding areas cannot be expected to live under fear while armed groups continue to operate with apparent freedom and impunity,” it said.

It demanded immediate and decisive action from the government and security forces to identify, arrest, and prosecute all those involved in the attack.

“This is not a one-time incident. The pattern is clear; attacks on our villages are continuing day by day, deliberately targeting civilian settlements and spreading terror among innocent people,” the Vaiphei People’s Council said.

The ethnic conflict in Manipur began in May 2023 between the non-tribal Meitei people, who dominate the Imphal Valley, and the Kuki-Zo people, who largely inhabit the surrounding hills. Last February, the conflict shifted to the hill districts between the Kuki-Zo and the Nagas, mostly hill dwellers.

The conflict in the hills intensified since May 13, when unidentified gunmen ambushed and killed three Thadou church leaders in Kangpokpi district. A section of the Thadous resents being clubbed in the Kuki group.

The killing of the church leaders triggered a hostage crisis between the Kukis and Nagas. Alleged Kuki extremists abducted 18 Nagas from Leilon Vaiphei village on May 13.

While 12 of them were released on May 15, the “mutilated and dismembered” bodies of six of them were recovered last week, stoking anger among the Nagas.

More than 270 people have lost their lives, and over 62,000 have been displaced in Manipur’s ethnic conflicts so far.