Manipur: Security concerns linger for resettled displaced families in Torbung despite official calm

Resettled internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Torbung, Manipur, say their fragile return home has been thrown into doubt after alleged incidents of firing and bombing in and around the village on Wednesday night, renewing fears over safety and the future of resettlement.

 

Residents said the violence exposed serious gaps in security arrangements, despite repeated assurances from authorities. Families who have returned after months in relief camps have urged the government to take firm action, including disarming militants under the Suspension of Operations (SoO), to prevent further attacks and allow sustained rehabilitation.

 

Only a handful of families have returned to Torbung so far, reflecting what residents describe as a slow and uncertain resettlement process. Many allege that security measures on the ground remain inadequate, particularly in areas close to neighbouring villages.

 

Oinam Aparna, a resident of Torbung Sabal Mamang Leikai, described a terrifying night for her family. She said that around 9 pm, while having dinner and preparing to sleep, they heard bursts of gunfire followed by explosions nearby. Fearing for their lives, she and her children hid under a bed. When a bomb later exploded within their house complex, she fled with her children to her uncle’s home.

 

According to Aparna, security forces deployed in the area later returned fire and the situation calmed only late at night, allowing them to return home. She said she had lived in a relief camp since violence broke out on May 3, 2023, and had come back to her house only about a year ago.

 

“Government says security forces are deployed to protect us, but when will the gunfire and bomb attacks stop?” she said, alleging that attacks tend to occur whenever villagers attempt to resettle near Kuki villages.

 

Another resident, Nobinchandra of Torbung, said he rushed back from a relief camp after hearing about the firing. Questioning the effectiveness of the security deployment, he said such incidents were continuing even under President’s Rule.

 

“We want friendship and peace. We never started the attacks. Security forces have the power to stop them, but firing and bombing continue,” he said.

 

The incident has drawn sharp reactions from civil society groups. COCOMI convenor Khuraijam Athouba said a team from the organisation had visited Torbung and Phougakchao Ikhai earlier on Tuesday to review the resettlement process. He alleged that later that evening, around 8.30 pm, there was indiscriminate firing from across the highway on the Churachandpur side, followed by a bombing in residential areas where new settlements were underway.

 

Terming the episode “very unfortunate”, Athouba claimed armed groups were operating from nearby hill areas of Bishnupur district despite heavy security presence, undermining both peace efforts and resettlement.

 

“We want to ask the current Governor’s administration whether they stand for peace or anti-peace,” he said, calling for “stringent legal and security action” against those responsible for what he described as terrorist attacks.

 

Athouba further alleged that the firing originated from the Kangbai area near a church complex close to a BSF camp, and questioned the response of security forces at the time. He warned that peace and normalcy would remain elusive if such incidents were tolerated or indirectly supported. While insisting that resettlement would continue as a matter of right for displaced villagers, he called for a new security arrangement to protect families displaced for over two and a half years.

 

He also accused the Kuki-Zo Council (KZC) of issuing a statement that appeared to justify the attacks. Describing this as unacceptable, Athouba said a complaint had been filed with the Bishnupur Superintendent of Police against KZC representative Ginza Vualzong, with further complaints to be submitted to the Director General of Police and the Chief Secretary. He demanded legal action against the organisation and called for it to be banned in the interest of restoring peace.

 

The Kuki-Zo Council, meanwhile, condemned what it described as a violent incident in the Torbung buffer zone and criticised the Bishnupur administration for permitting the resettlement of Meitei IDPs in what it called a sensitive and volatile area. The council warned that such moves were provocative and risked renewed conflict, urging authorities to roll back the resettlement.

 

Rejecting allegations against the Kuki-Zo community, the council said its people had shown restraint and questioned the sequence of events leading to the incident. It maintained that the Manipur crisis was political in nature and reiterated its demand for a separate administrative arrangement for the Kuki-Zo people, calling on the Government of India to intervene.