Probe link : DMCC
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IMPHAL, Jan 17 : The Delhi Meetei Co-ordinating Committee (DMCC) has demanded a thorough investigation into a probable nexus between Chin-Kuki militants and Myanmar based arm traders/smugglers following the arrest of a Chin National Front (CNF) leader in Mizoram.
In a statement, the Committee urged both the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Mizoram police to investigate and verify whether weapons seized near Saithah village on January 15 were not intended for trade among Chin-Kuki militants who have been carrying out a violent campaign against Meeteis since May 3, 2023.
As per different reports, the arms and ammunition seized in Mamit district, Mizoram, include six AK-47 Rifles, over 10,000 rounds of ammunition, and 13 magazines.
Five persons were arrested along with the arms and ammunition of which one is a prominent leader of Myanmar-based CNF.
Even though Chin Kuki militants often claim that they only use toy guns, the arms seized in Mizoram were real guns, DMCC said.
Saying that Chin-Kuki militants have been using sophisticated weapons similar to those seized in Mizoram to attack Meetei villages since the onset of the violence in Manipur, it contended that the weapons in the possession of Chin-Kuki militants were not looted from police armoury.
According to Mizoram police, preliminary investigation suggests the weapons were meant for trade between the CNF and the United People's Democratic Front (UPDF P), an insurgent group operating in Bangladesh's Chittagong Hill Tracts.
"With this catch, a serious threat to regional peace and stability has been neutralized," the police had stated.
The DMCC highlighted previous arms trafficking incidents in the region, including a July 2024 NIA case against "Mizoram-based ethnic groups engaged in illegal trafficking of arms, ammunition, explosives etc."
DMCC appealed to the relevant authority to acknowledge such crackdowns on international arms trafficking in North East States or other States in India and the police team be rewarded.
In a statement, the Committee urged both the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Mizoram police to investigate and verify whether weapons seized near Saithah village on January 15 were not intended for trade among Chin-Kuki militants who have been carrying out a violent campaign against Meeteis since May 3, 2023.
As per different reports, the arms and ammunition seized in Mamit district, Mizoram, include six AK-47 Rifles, over 10,000 rounds of ammunition, and 13 magazines.
Five persons were arrested along with the arms and ammunition of which one is a prominent leader of Myanmar-based CNF.
Even though Chin Kuki militants often claim that they only use toy guns, the arms seized in Mizoram were real guns, DMCC said.
Saying that Chin-Kuki militants have been using sophisticated weapons similar to those seized in Mizoram to attack Meetei villages since the onset of the violence in Manipur, it contended that the weapons in the possession of Chin-Kuki militants were not looted from police armoury.
According to Mizoram police, preliminary investigation suggests the weapons were meant for trade between the CNF and the United People's Democratic Front (UPDF P), an insurgent group operating in Bangladesh's Chittagong Hill Tracts.
"With this catch, a serious threat to regional peace and stability has been neutralized," the police had stated.
The DMCC highlighted previous arms trafficking incidents in the region, including a July 2024 NIA case against "Mizoram-based ethnic groups engaged in illegal trafficking of arms, ammunition, explosives etc."
DMCC appealed to the relevant authority to acknowledge such crackdowns on international arms trafficking in North East States or other States in India and the police team be rewarded.