Army trashes report of clash between Assam Rifles, Manipur Police

Kolkata/Imphal, June 5 (IANS) Even minor incidents in strife-hit Manipur are being blown out of proportion by certain parties, sources in the Kolkata headquartered Army's Eastern Command said while rubbishing claims of a clash between personnel of the 37 Assam Rifles and Manipur Police at Sugnu in the Kakching district of the state.

"Such rumours are being spread by those inimical to peace in Manipur. There has been no clash between the Assam Rifles and the Manipur Police and a training video from Punjab dating back to 2021 is being circulated depicting a casualty. This is fake. The Army and Assam Rifles are working together to restore normalcy in the state," the Army maintained.

The possible spark to all this was probably a video of a verbal spat between Assam Rifles personnel and state policemen over the parking of vehicles near the gate of the Sugnu police station, which also serves as the office of the SDPO. There was a heated exchange but things did not get physical. A senior police officer is heard warning the Assam Rifles personnel of an FIR unless the vehicles blocking the gate of the police station are moved away. The two sides then disperse and the vehicles leave.

"Such things happen when the situation is tense. There can be issues regarding jurisdiction and authority. In the actual video, officers are seen trying to bring things under control. Things didn't get out of hand even for a moment. The fake video showed something else. This mischief is being done to ensure that violence continues in the state," the source said.

Over the last month, ever since violence erupted in Manipur, both the Assam Rifles and Manipur Police have come under fire from the two ethnic groups - Meitis and Kukis. The Kukis claim that the Manipur Police are against them as most of the personnel are Meitis from the Valley. The Meitis, on the other hand, maintain that Assam Rifles personnel have close links with the Kukis as they operate in the Hills.

"There is no truth in all this. The Kukis are unhappy with the Manipur Police as the latter curbed their attempts to violence as the first responders. By then, the Meitis had started retaliating and the Assam Rifles intervened. That is when the Meitis started claiming that the Assam Rifles are playing a partisan role. Instead of this blame-game, people from both sides need to work towards a peaceful solution. It has been made very clear that no side will be allowed to commit any violence," the source added.

Security agencies have also urged outsiders with little knowledge of the ground reality in the state to refrain from making irresponsible statements.