The Kuki CSO Working Committee Ukhrul condemned the ambush at Mahadev along National Highway 202 (Ukhrul-Imphal Road) at around 11:40AM on 18 October 2026, barely metres from a BSF checkpoint. Sources informed that 6 adults and 1 child were travelling in a Maruti Baleno. Dilip Dahal (34) and his wife Bipana Dahal, both Gorkhali civilians, sustained minor injuries.
The statement issued by the Department of Information and Media, WKCSOS-Ukhrul stated that “the Kuki CSO Working Committee (WCKCSOS), Ukhrul, vehemently condemns the latest ambush perpetrated by NSCN (IM) at Mahadev along NH-202 at around 11:40 AM today, 18 October 2026. While the Kuki-Zo community continues to endure relentless assaults, torched homes and the tragic loss of innocent lives, another ambush has made Gorkhali civilians the latest casualties of NSCN(IM)’s unabated armed violence.
“Six adults and a child travelling in a Maruti Baleno from Imphal towards Lamlai Chingphel Khuti were ambushed along NH-202, barely metres from a BSF checkpoint. The attack originated from a Tangkhul farmhouse within the Mahadev stretch under the jurisdiction of Thowai Tangkhul, also known as Thoyee. Two victims, Mr. Dilip Dahal (34) and his wife, Mrs. Bipana Dahal, both Gorkhali civilians, sustained injuries. As in the 10 October 2026 ambush, innocent Gorkhali civilians have once again paid the price of mistaken identity and unbridled armed aggression of NSCN(IM).
“How can NSCN(IM) unleash a deadly ambush between the BSF camp at Mahadev and the Army base at Gwaltabi without fear of interception or accountability? Such brazen audacity raises grave suspicions of political patronage and the perceived immunity under which NSCN (IM) continues to operate. Is the outfit emboldened by the conviction that political backing will shield it from central security forces and the consequences of its violence? The Governments of Manipur and India must answer how armed cadres can repeatedly launch attacks in such a security-sensitive stretch without being intercepted or brought to justice.
“How many villages must be ravaged, how many ambushes must be unleashed, and how many innocent lives must be sacrificed before these governments rein in NSCN(IM)? Recycled assurances are an affront to grieving families when civilians remain exposed to armed violence and perpetrators continue to operate with apparent impunity.
“WCKCSOs-Ukhrul demands immediate, intensive ground and aerial search-and-combing operations across Tangkhul villages surrounding Kuki-Zo villages in Ukhrul district, including Thoyee, to expose and dismantle. suspected armed hideouts, recover illegal weapons and prevent further attacks. These operations must extend to vulnerable forested areas, suspected staging points and locations from which armed cadres may be launching attacks. The proximity of this latest ambush to the BSF checkpoint at Mahadev and the Army base at Gwaltabi makes swift, coordinated security intervention imperative. The Governments of Manipur and India must abandon hollow assurances and demonstrate their resolve through decisive, on-ground action before another innocent civilian is killed. All operations must remain lawful and intelligence-led, targeting armed cadres and their operational infrastructure rather than civilians solely on the basis of their community identity.
Kuki-Zo and Gorkhali lives are not expendable, and NH-202 cannot be surrendered to armed cadres as a killing ground. Every further delay in decisive security action will deepen the civilian protection crisis and further erode public confidence in the governments’ ability to uphold the most fundamental duty of the state: protecting innocent lives” added the statement issued by the Department of Information and Media WKCSOS-Ukhrul.
