'Bomb Smashed Through Roof': Eyewitnesses on Manipur Drone Attacks That Killed 2

"There were continuous gunfire and explosions. Everyone ran for their safety," recounted an eyewitness to The Quint.

"We saw two victims, but the woman wasn't moving at all. So, we tried to save the little girl first," said Ningthoujam Surjitkumar Singh, a local who helped rescue the mother-daughter duo moments after a drone attack on Sunday, 1 September in Koutruk village of Manipur's Imphal West district. The mother, however, did not survive.

"We arranged for a local vehicle to take them to RIMS (Regional Institute of Medical Sciences in Imphal) because there is neither a hospital nor an ambulance in our village."

Koutruk village is roughly 18 km away from Manipur's capital city Imphal. A day after the said drone attack at around 2:45 pm in Koutruk (as well as in Kadangband) village, there was another drone attack on Monday, this time in Imphal West's Senjam Chirang, injuring three people.

"In an unprecedented attack in Koutruk, Imphal West, alleged Kuki militants have deployed numerous RPGs (rocket-propelled grenades) using high-tech drones," read a statement issued by the Manipur Police.

"While drone bombs have commonly been used in general warfare, this recent deployment of drones to deploy explosives against security forces and civilians marks a significant escalation. The involvement of highly trained professionals, possibly with technical expertise and support, cannot be ruled out. "Combing operations are ongoing to flush out any inimical elements."

Manipur Police statement

The mother – Ngangbam Surbala, 31 – "succumbed to bullet injuries sustained in the attack", according to the police statement. Her 11-year-old daughter suffered an injury on her arm. Surbala and her daughter were visiting from Phayeng village in Imphal West district when the attack happened.

Initially, both of them were admitted to RIMS. Later, the daughter was transferred to Raj Medicity after the mother was pronounced dead. A village volunteer was also killed in the drone attack in Kadangband. Two police personnel and a television journalist also sustained injuries.

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'Continuous Gunfire, Explosions': Eyewitnesses

"There were continuous gunfire and explosions. Everyone ran for their safety. Many houses have been completely destroyed," Ningthoujam told The Quint as he showed photos of the properties that came under attack.

RC Mangangcha, a local journalist in Koutruk, who rushed to cover the attack told The Quint,

“I saw a drone flying at a very high altitude in the area, and later, we heard a bomb blast.”

According to Mangangcha, TV journalist Elangbam Mushuk of Impact TV, a local Manipuri channel, was injured in his right hand and right leg during the attack, and his phone completely destroyed. He has now been discharged.

Two Days of Drone Attacks

A day after the 1 September attack, another drone attack injured three members of a family in Imphal West's Senjam Chirang on Monday evening. The injured are Watham Gambhir, his daughter Sanatombi, and his younger brother Jotin.

They were treated at Shija Hospitals and Research Institute in Imphal. A family member that The Quint spoke to alleged there were three bombs.

"The second bomb smashed through the roof of the room where my daughter was," the family member claimed.

Sanatombi is still being treated at the hospital as of Thursday morning.

Even a cow was gravely injured in the bomb attack in Senjam Chirang. Locals said that it is being treated by local veterinary doctors.

The Imphal West incidents have broken the uneasy calm in the Imphal Valley area since the last attack on 27 April when two Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel were allegedly killed in a clash in Bishnupur district.

Social Welfare Minister Heikham Dingo, who visited Gambhir and his family in Senjam Chirang, told the press that the use of such lethal technologies is "unprecedented" – and against international humanitarian laws. He added that he will discuss the drone attacks and other issues with Chief Minister Biren Singh.

DGP Manipur Rajiv Singh visited the affected areas, too. He told the villagers that the forces are "doing their best to protect the civilians".

He said on Tuesday, 3 September that the Manipur administration has also requested the expertise of Delhi-based agencies, including the National Security Guard (NSG), to address the threats.

Manipur Chief Minister Biren Singh, meanwhile, on Tuesday called the drone attacks an “act of terrorism”.

“Dropping of bombs on civilian population and security forces by using drones is an act of terrorism, and I condemn such cowardly acts in the strongest terms. Manipur state government takes such unprovoked assault with utmost seriousness and will take up necessary response to fight such forms of terrorism upon the indigenous population.”

Biren Singh on social media

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'People Worried About Stepping Out'

Koutruk lies in Meitei-dominated Imphal West district, adjacent to the Kuki-dominated district of Kangpokpi.

Ningthoujam Ojen Singh, who had also helped to rush the victims in the Koutruk bombing to the hospital, told The Quint that the situation on the ground is still tense.

"People are worried about stepping out of their homes, but they must in order to continue farming."

Ningthoujam Ojen Singh, a local

He further accused the forces for failing to protect the locals. "Currently, state police commandos are on high alert though they arrived after the attack... But we are dissatisfied with the state and central forces who were present but failed to respond effectively. The IRB (Indian Reserve Battalion) and state police commandos are now providing protection, but tensions persist."

In a statement on 1 September, the Manipur government’s Home Department called the attacks an “act of terrorising unarmed villagers.”

“Such act of creating havoc among the unarmed villagers, reportedly by Kuki militants, is seen as an attempt to derail the efforts taken by the state government to establish peace. And such acts are condemned very strongly. The state government has already taken up immediate action to control the situation and to punish those who were involved in today’s attack on Koutruk village, Imphal West.”

Home Department, Goverment of Manipur

Another local further alleged that locals in the area were concerned that the government had failed to protect civilians, "even as militants have escalated their attacks from bullets to sophisticated weapons like drone bombs."

Pradip Phanjoubam, a senior journalist based in Manipur, told The Quint that the technology to jam drones are available but it is not the appropriate one.

"Experts concerned spoke to me after the attack. These jammers have a long range that are meant for border areas with a 15-20 km radius. But this technology cannot be used in civilian areas because of the residing population. So, the government is equipped but not rightly equipped," he said.

When asked about the possibility of a foreign hand, Phanjoubam said, "If you've been tracking the developments in Myanmar, then in the Northern Shan State, where the fighting is going on, a lot of these drones are used. So, the drones that are being used by both sides in Manipur, are probably coming in from there. If one side is armed, the other side will also arm itself. The state has to be prepared."

Meanwhile, the Kuki Inpi Manipur, the apex body of the Kuki tribes, vehemently denied the allegations that the Kukis were behind the drone attacks. Its statement further argued that it is "highly suspicious that the recent narrative of drone bombings is fabricated to divert attention from the audio leak involving the Chief Minister of Manipur Shri N Biren Singh."

Audio tapes released by The Wire appear to reveal that the Manipur government led by Biren Singh tried to escalate the ethnic violence between the Kukis and the Meiteis instead of curtailing it. Biren Singh and his government have categorically denied the allegations, calling the clips doctored. The tapes were submitted to the Commission of Inquiry set up by the Ministry of Home Affairs to probe the causes of the conflict and the lapses by the state administration.

The Kuki Inpi had previously issued another statement claiming that Sunday's incident was an attempt to “ambush Kuki-Zo civilians along the ‘Kanggui-Lamka’ road".

Meanwhile, Delhi-based Bharat Hindu Mahasena accused Manipur Tribal Affairs and Hills, Horticulture and Soil Conservation Minister Letpao Haokip of masterminding the bombing at Koutruk.

Haokip refuted the allegations, stating,

“It is hard to comprehend the logic behind involving my name in the recent Koutruk incident, which is already under the scrutiny of the security forces and other agencies. From the beginning, I have been convinced that violence is not the solution to the problem. I firmly believe that an unbiased understanding of the issue, along with logical and mature handling of the matter, is the key to lasting peace in the region.”

A joint statement was also released by Kuki-Zo Civil Society Organisations regarding the same.

Prior to the bomb attacks in Imphal West, recent incidents of violence in Manipur have occurred mostly in Jiribam district. Watch The Quint's video report for more.

More than 220 people, according to official numbers, have been killed in Manipur's ethnic conflict that has been raging since 3 May last year.

In response to the deteriorating law and order situation, the Manipur Police Department on 4 September "purchased few 7.62mm MMG MK 2A1" machine guns from the Ordnance Factory in Jabalpur. The guns have been collected, as per the government document attached below.

[For more than a year, Manipur has been torn apart by ethnic violence. Hundreds have died, and thousands have been displaced, with their future still uncertain. The Quint has been relentlessly reporting on the conflict in pursuit of facts, untold stories, and the truth. We would like to hear from you on what you think we should cover and investigate in our reports from Manipur. Send us your suggestions — and we will do our best to incorporate them. Apart from the risks involved in reporting from a conflict-ridden area, such reports require both time and resources. YOUR support helps us in our endeavour.]

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