Imphal: Manipur police on Wednesday held the proscribed underground Kangleipak Community Party — People’s War Group (KCP-PWG) responsible for the killing of a 45-year-old farmer belonging to the Chiru (Naga) community, the smallest indigenous tribe in Manipur.
Following the reports of the death of one Merangir Mechek, 45, a farmer by profession, the police conducted a search operation at Kangchup foothills located at the adjoining areas of the Kangpokpi and Imphal West districts to arrest the perpetrators involved in the incident on Tuesday.
Though no arrest has been made, the operation yielded the recovery of various criminal items including 11 army-designed helmets, 10 camouflaged pants, 18 camouflaged shirts, five army-designed scalps, four camouflaged caps, 11 pairs of jungle boots, six BP covers, two mobile handsets, two Haver sack type bag, one Demand Letter of KCP (PWG), one Letter Head of KCP (PWG), six cane stick and one iron rod.
Merangir Mechek, a resident of Kangchup village, was handed over with severe injuries to the womenfolk of the same village at around 8:30 pm on Monday.
He left his home on Monday at around 8:30 am and was reportedly kidnapped by the miscreants on espionage charges.
The motive behind the incident may be the case of espionage he took for a particular community inflaming communal violence between the warring groups of the Kukis and Meiteis in and around the Kangchup Chiru village in Imphal west district, the police said.
However, efforts to arrest the culprits involved in the incident are in full swing, police added.
Meanwhile, there has been no clarification from the KCP (PWG) in this regard so far.