Imphal, Oct 15 — A middle-aged Kuki tribal woman was killed and two other civilians went missing after suspected militants ambushed two motorcycles in Manipur's Kamjong district on Thursday evening, officials said.
A police official, quoting local villagers, said that four civilians travelling on two motorcycles to Phaikoh to purchase essential commodities were ambushed between Phaikoh and Molvailup.
The woman, identified as Hatneimkim Haokip, died on the spot, while her husband escaped unhurt, the official added.
The two other civilians remain missing, and their whereabouts are unknown.
Security personnel, along with villagers, have launched search operations to trace the missing persons.
Various organisations, including the Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM), have strongly condemned the killing.
In a statement, KIM Secretary for Information and Publicity Janghaolun Haokip accused the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah) of carrying out the attack and alleged that the outfit had repeatedly targeted defenceless civilians, particularly women and children.
Describing the incident as a grave violation of humanitarian principles, he said that the alleged attacks on vulnerable civilians and villagers were unacceptable and must be condemned in the strongest possible terms.
The KIM also held the state and Central governments responsible for what it described as a breakdown of law and order that had allowed insurgent groups to operate with impunity.
Accusing the authorities of indecision and failure to take decisive action, Haokip demanded an immediate and comprehensive security operation to identify and apprehend those responsible for Haokip's killing and trace the two missing civilians.
He said that mere assurances were no longer sufficient and called for concrete action to ensure the safety of civilians and bring the perpetrators to justice.
The KIM expressed condolences to the bereaved family and said that the organisation stood in solidarity with them during their hour of grief.
It warned that failure to take immediate and tangible steps to bring the perpetrators to justice, locate the missing civilians and ensure the protection of innocent people could lead to public unrest and further escalation of tensions.