Morung Express News
Dimapur | June 5
A post of the Assam Rifles located at Lampong Sheanghah village in Mon district was attacked on June 5. One AR sentry was wounded in the gunfire. Assam Rifles sources said that the camp came under automatic gunfire at around 2:20 am. In the resultant brief exchange of fire, one sentry, identified as Rifleman RN Modak, sustained gunshot wound and was evacuated to a hospital in Jorhat, Assam. Stating that the injury was not life threatening, the sources added that the post commander, a Major, also sustained minor injury.
Describing the incident as a hit-and-run, the sources maintained that it could not ascertain as to who were behind the attack. No evidence has so far been found to suggest casualty on the side of the attackers, it added.
The Mon police said that the gunfight occurred in the wee hours on the outskirts of the village, where the AR post is located. The fire fight was brief during which a soldier on guard duty was injured. The police said that a separate post of the Village Guards is located in close proximity to the site of the incident. Stating that there was no report of any civilian casualty, the police said that the situation in the village was reported as normal while the AR has heightened vigil in the area.
KU condemns
The Konyak Union meanwhile said that it cannot comprehend why the Village Guard (VG) camp was “stormed upon.” “Village guards are the protector of the village. Their sole duty is to maintain peaceful environment within its confined jurisdiction. Such atrocities upon the Konyak VGs are not expected,” a press note from KU President, Manlip Konyak and General Secretary, Honang Konyak.
It informed that the VG Camp at Lampong Sheanghah was “stormed upon by some unknown armed groups at the wee hour injuring two Assam Rifle jawans stationed there.”
It further stated that the union along with the Konyak Students Union (KSU) had conducted spot verification, wherein it was observed that “innocent villagers had to suffer the burns of such cruel atrocities.” “All schools were closed and innocent villagers were held captive for interrogation,” it informed. The union however acknowledged Assam Rifle officer Captain Longnyu Konyak for “retorting the plea of the Konyak Union (KU) in liberating those held captive without any physical infliction.”
The KU demanded that those responsible for the incident “state publicly” the reason for “causing such atrocities upon the peaceful soil of the Konyaks.” In this regard, an emergency meeting has been convened on June 6 at 10:00am.
ENPO appeals for peace
The Eastern Nagaland Peoples Organization (ENPO) and it’s six federating tribal bodies also condemned the incident and reminded all concerned of its December 18, 2007 Tuensang Resolution, “wherein the public of Eastern Nagaland are opposed to any form of violence, threats, intimidations or bloodshed within its jurisdiction, Eastern Nagaland.”
A press note from the media cell of the ENPO reiterated its appeal to all concerned people to maintain peace and tranquility and to honor the same in the interest of peace in the region in particular and the entire state in general.
