Bishnupur (Manipur): Suspected militants killed five people, all outsiders, in Manipur on Monday. The bodies of the victims were found inside the Keibul Lamjao National Park in Bishnupur district where the security forces had conducted a flush-out operation in April. Acting on reports that some armed persons had taken nine non-Manipuri migrants inside Loktak Lake area, a team of media persons and villagers conducted a search operation in the marshy area and discovered the bodies. Reportedly, the team discovered the bodies of the migrants floating on biomass. According to the search party, out of the five victims, only one had bullet wounds, while the rest had been hacked to death by the assailants. The incident created a panic among the residents who fled the area fearing violence. "We heard the sound of gunshots. As we had faced such incidents before, out of fear, we decided to flee from this place to a safer area to save our lives. We had suffered a lot. When asked from where the sound of gunshots came, we were told that it came from the northern side. We also heard five to six rounds of gunshots," said Bembem Devi , a resident. It is believed that the assailants had abducted nine migrants and brought them to the park. All nine are feared dead though the bodies of only five have been discovered so far. The search continues to flush out more bodies from the area. Although no group has come forth to take the responsibility for the incident, the police suspects complicity of a militant group. The killings of the migrants are latest in the spate of attacks on non-Manipuri residents in the state. Earlier, five migrant labourers were killed in separate incidents between February and March in Manipur this year. These attacks have forced many labourers to flee the state.
- May 12, 2009