JTC Announces Indefinite Shutdown After Alleged Attack on Naga Volunteers

Imphal: A violent standoff erupted Wednesday morning at a Naga Village Guard training camp in Bitiang village, Noney district. Local sources report that personnel from the CRPF CoBRA unit conducted an operation at the site, sparking an exchange of gunfire. Tensions remain high as local reports claim there are casualties among the Naga volunteers, though exact numbers and identities stay unconfirmed.

Reports suggest that CRPF personnel blocked members of the Rongmei Luh Phwam from accessing the area. Local women also gathered to obstruct further movement of security forces toward Bitiang. The Working Committee of the Joint Tribes Council, Manipur, responded to the incident by declaring an immediate, indefinite shutdown across territories inhabited by the Inpui, Liangmai, Rongmei, and Zeme communities.

The council alleges the CoBRA team acted in collusion with ZUF-J to attack volunteers protecting their ancestral lands. The JTC-Manipur also links this escalation to the May 13, 2026, abduction and killing of six Naga civilians, including two pastors, in Leilon Vaiphei. They claim those perpetrators remain at large.

The shutdown targets National Highways, railway services, and various national projects. Essential sectors, including healthcare, schools, electricity, and telecommunications, are exempt from the strike. The organization stated the action will persist until the Government of India takes "decisive and meaningful action" to arrest those responsible for the killings and ends hostile operations against Naga villages.