Imphal: The North East Dialogue Forum is pushing for independent investigations into the deaths of three civilians near Nungsham and Kongbal Tangkhul villages. The group also demands answers regarding the October 18 violence in Kangabok. Mukul Phukon, an Assam-based member of the forum, directed these demands to Security Adviser Kuldeep Singh, National Security Adviser Ajit Kumar Doval, and the Inspector General of Assam Rifles (South). The forum wants transparent accountability for security agencies operating in the region.
The victims near Nungsham and Kongbal Tangkhul were collecting firewood when attacked. The forum suspects they were targeted after reconnaissance and questioned how an assault occurred in a heavily guarded area. They demanded the government identify the attackers and investigate potential ties to counter-insurgency or illegal drug cultivation. The group stated: "The circumstances of the attack, it said, raised concerns that the victims might have been deliberately targeted following prior reconnaissance."
Violence in Kangabok on October 18 left 26-year-old Laishram Rakesh dead. The incident, which occurred during a sports and entertainment event, resulted in multiple injuries and destroyed shops, homes, and vehicles. The forum wants to know how weapons entered the village and who initiated the gunfire. They maintain that the constant insecurity under existing security deployments proves the apparatus is failing. The NEDF urged the government to support the victims' families, convene a Cabinet meeting to discuss the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, and eventually repeal the law across the Northeast.
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