Four abandoned Naga homes were set on fire at Khedaghar in ethnic violence-hit Manipur’s Tamenglong district on Sunday evening in a retaliatory attack hours after four Kukis were killed in separate attacks earlier that day, officials said on Monday. Officials said unidentified arsonists set the houses around 27 km from the district headquarters on fire, and no casualties were reported, as the Nagas had left their homes weeks ago fearing Kuki retaliation amid heightened tensions between the two communities.
“The district has only one remote Naga village, Baiboni, around 30 km from headquarters. There are around 20 houses, and a permanent platoon of CRPF is stationed there. A column of 38 AR [Assam Rifles] is also stationed at Muolzol Kuki village, almost three km from Baiboni. The council said Naga leaders demand justice for six Nagas killed in May but remain silent over the 22 Kuki-Zos, including women and children, whom Naga armed groups have reportedly killed since the beginning of 2026. The ethnic violence in Manipur first began in 2023 between the Meitei and Kuki communities before involving almost every community.
It added that in Longpi, Julie Gangte, a pregnant woman, and Thangvel Roel Gangte, the only son of his family, were killed, while Nei Esther sustained critical injuries. The state’s Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities have shut each other out of the areas they dominate.
An officer requesting anonymity said security forces, including the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), dominated the area and residents had fled. It said a Tollen couple was killed and their six-year-old son sustained a gunshot injury to his hand, reportedly leaving it nearly severed. On Monday, the Kuki-Zo Council (KZC), a Kuki-Zo apex civil body, condemned the attacks in Tollen and Longpi.
