Intel on ‘900 Kuki militants entering Manipur’ found incorrect: Security officials

Manipur police authorities have said that a recent claim of the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) citing intelligence input about “over 900 Kuki militants” entering the state from Myanmar was found incorrect as these could not be substantiated on the ground.

Manipur Security Advisor Kuldiep Singh and Director General of Police Rajiv Singh — the two top security officials of the state — in a joint statement on Sep 25 issued a “clarification”, stating that “the input was verified from different quarters, but it could not be substantiated on the ground”.

“However, security forces deployed on the ground are placed on a high alert to protect the lives and properties of citizens. All communities are assured of their safety. They are advised not to believe in any rumors or unverified information,” reads the statement.

On Sep 17, an intelligence input from the CMO to the DGP, Security Advisor, Chief Secretary, and Home Commissioner was “leaked” and widely circulated, spreading panic among residents of Manipur’s Meitei-majority valley.

“Over 900 Kuki militants, newly trained in the use of drone-based bombs, projectiles, missiles and jungle warfare, have entered Manipur from Myanmar,” it stated.

It further said that they are grouped in units of 30 and are “scattered in the periphery”, and that they are “expected to launch multiple coordinated attacks on Meitei villages around Sep 28.

Following this, Security Advisor Singh addressed reporters on Sep 20 and said that security agencies, particularly the Assam Rifles, have been put on high alert in the hill districts bordering Myanmar in the backdrop of the input.

Singh said that the matter was discussed in a Strategic Operation Group meeting chaired by him, bringing together top officials from various security agencies, including the Army, Assam Rifles, Central Reserve Police Force, Border Security Force, and state police.

CMO’s claim was criticized recently by Kuki-Zo groups, with the Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum saying he was amplifying “devious propaganda to defame the Kuki-Zo people and use it as a pretext to attack Kuki-Zo volunteers”.

Following the joint statement by top security officials, the CMO also wrote to the Information and Public Relations Department as well as the security officials backtracking on its earlier claim.

“Based on information gathered on the movement of armed groups, this office had shared intelligence inputs… to enable the police department to use its machinery and network to develop the said information to determine actionability," it said in a statement.

“It is now ascertained that the possibility of any such misadventure by armed groups is remote. The public need not worry further in this regard,” reads the note, with a request to the public relations department to circulate the information with the public.

Notably, this was the second time that intelligence inputs shared by the CMO to the top security officials had been “leaked” into the public domain.

Earlier, days after Jiribam district witnessed violence in June, a communication sent from the CMO to security officials was leaked, which was later referred to an alert sent by the CMO in January on reports of the movement of “about 200 Kuki-Zo militants from Churachandpur to areas bordering Jiribam”.