Two abandoned farm houses set afire by suspected militants in Manipur

Two abandoned farm houses have been set on fire by suspected militants in Manipur's Jiribam district, police said on Sunday.

Earlier on Saturday, suspected Kuki militants carried out attacks using guns and bombs in a village, leading to a gunfight between the CRPF personnel and Manipur Police.

A police officer said that the latest -- farm house burning incident -- took place in the Nungkhal area late on Saturday night when two abandoned farm houses belonging to Hilghat gram panchayat head, L. Somorendro, were set on fire by suspected extremists.

There were, however, no injuries as no one was present in the two farm houses.

Senior police officers accompanied by additional forces visited the Nungkhal area on Sunday and investigated the incident.

Saturday night's farm house burning incident occurred within 12 hours after the Kuki militants attacked a village adjoining the Borobekra police station on Sunday morning.

The militants managed to escape after a gunbattle of more than 30 minutes with the security forces.

No injuries, however, were reported from the Saturday morning incident.

The mixed-populated Jiribam district, adjoining Assam, has witnessed several incidents of violence this year.

The overall situation in the district had been relatively peaceful even after ethnic violence broke out in many districts of the northeastern state since May last year.

Saturday's two militant attacks took place five days after the crucial meeting between MLAs of the warring Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities in Delhi on October 15. Naga legislators also attended the vital meeting.

Seventeen months after the ethnic violence erupted in Manipur, the Ministry of Home Affairs held the first meeting with all three major communities -- Meitei, Kuki, and Naga -- in a bid to find a way to a peaceful solution to the unrest.

Sources said that around seven Ministers and 13 legislators from Meitei, Kuki and Naga communities took part in the meeting.