PREPAK Claims Grenade Attacks on Manipur Politician and Officials

Imphal: Police pulled a live grenade from the home of former minister Bijoy Koijam late Thursday night. Officers arrived at the Thongju Pheijaleitong property around 11 p.m. to defuse the device. No one got hurt. The threat triggered immediate local backlash.

Residents held a sit-in protest on Friday. They blasted the militants for planting explosives in a packed neighborhood. The protesters argued that disputes must be handled through talk, not violence. They demanded the attackers show their faces and explain the motive behind the blast.

The proscribed outfit PREPAK claimed the attack. Publicity officer Mangal Khuman admitted to this incident and a separate one at the same home on June 28. The group also took credit for an explosion at the residence of Phurailatpam Bhavananda Sharma in June. PREPAK accused Koijam of acting as an agent for the RAW and the IB to dismantle their Red Army. They gave the former MLA seven days to stop his activities. The group warned that failure to comply would result in him being tried before its self-styled "people’s court."

PREPAK also targeted Sharma and several block development officials for alleged graft. They accused the group of skimming funds from the MGNREGA program. The outfit claimed the officials extorted lakhs from villagers to approve local committees. The militants gave these officials five days to contact them.