Manipur Police Nab Three Militants, Seize Arms Cache

Manipur police hauled in three hardcore militants from outlawed groups and a notorious arms trafficker over the weekend, seizing a cache of weapons that could have fueled fresh violence in the restive state.

The operation kicked off Friday in Bishnupur district's remote Tronglaobi village, where officers ambushed two extortion rackets tied to the banned People's Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK). The duo—youthful firebrands Thokchom Manimatum Singh, 20, and Laishram Premsagar Singh, 24—had been terrorizing locals, squeezing "protection" money from shops, schools, and terrified villagers. "These thugs were bleeding the community dry," a senior police official revealed, noting their arrests came after months of tips from fed-up residents. Interrogations are underway, with leads pointing to a broader network preying on Manipur's economic fragility amid ongoing ethnic clashes.

Not far away, in Imphal East's bustling Kongba neighborhood, authorities cuffed 62-year-old Adhikarimayum Ramkumar Sharma, a grizzled veteran of the People's Liberation Army (PLA)—another proscribed outfit with deep roots in the region's separatist underbelly. Sharma, no stranger to the shadows, was nabbed during a routine patrol that turned into a high-stakes foot chase. Sources say he was plotting logistics for PLA's shadowy operations, including recruitment drives in vulnerable hill tracts.

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The sting's crown jewel unfolded in Imphal West's Yurembam area, where 33-year-old Phijam Chetanjit Singh—alleged kingpin of an underground arms bazaar—was dragged from his hideout. A tipster's whisper led cops to his doorstep, where they uncovered a deadly haul: a gleaming self-loading rifle, two loaded magazines, and a whopping 96 rounds of assorted ammo, enough to arm a small squad. "This wasn't just a dealer; he was the pipeline keeping insurgents locked and loaded," the police statement thundered, vowing to dismantle his supply chain that stretches from Myanmar's porous borders to Manipur's hidden caches.

Manipur, scarred by decades of rebel strife and recent Meitei-Kuki flare-ups, has seen a surge in such busts as security forces ramp up intel-sharing with central agencies. With over 200 militants neutralized this year alone, officials hail the arrests as a morale booster, but warn the fight's far from over. "Every collar like this saves lives," one officer confided. As the suspects cool their heels in Imphal's high-security lockup, the state breathes a cautious sigh—hoping this haul stifles the next bullet before it flies.

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