Manipur's security establishment carried out a series of coordinated operations on Friday, September 4, netting three suspected insurgents from a banned armed group, a fourth man linked to another outlawed outfit, and a woman allegedly caught with narcotics, according to police.
Grenades, detonators seized in Imphal West raid
Acting on a tip that was cross-checked with inputs from the 19 Garhwal Rifles and the 31 Assam Rifles, commandos attached to the Imphal East unit swooped on Awang Leikinthabi in Imphal West district and picked up three men said to be functioning cadres of the outlawed KYKL. Police named them as Ahanthem Puninkanta Singh, who goes by Deepak and is 45 years old; Potsangbam Niranjan Singh, known as Chaobi, aged 30; and 31-year-old Mohen Takhellambam, alias Renyai. A search of their belongings turned up four No. 36 hand grenades and an equal number of detonators, along with two scooters and three mobile handsets that were also seized as part of the case. Manipur Police shared details of the raid on X shortly after the arrests.
Alleged extortion suspect held in Porompat
In a separate raid carried out the same day, commandos from the Imphal West unit, working on intelligence backed by the 33 Assam Rifles, went to a house at Wangkhei Keithel Ashangbi, within the jurisdiction of Porompat police station, and detained a man identified as an active member of UNLF (K). He was named as Mayengbam Chingkhomba Meitei, alias Nanao, 32, whom police accuse of running extortion rackets in the area.
Woman held with heroin, tablets and cash
A third operation, a joint cordon-and-search exercise mounted by Heingang police station together with the Imphal East commando unit, targeted a house at Khabeisoi Maning Leikai. There, officers arrested a woman identified as Nurbanu, alias Rani. The search of the premises turned up 400 tablets of Nitrapal-10, 59 small vials suspected to contain heroin, and cash amounting to Rs 14,100.
Cases still under investigation
Police said all four cases, the three KYKL arrests, the UNLF (K) case and the narcotics seizure, remain under separate investigation. Officers are expected to question the detainees further about their networks, the source of the weapons and drugs recovered, and any wider links to banned outfits still operating across the Imphal valley.
