The Khamenlok clash occurred during 12–14 June 2023, in the course of 2023–2025 Manipur violence between the Meitei and Kuki people, in the Khamenlok river valley, a branch valley of the Iril River valley, in the Saikul subdivision of Kangpokpi district. An estimated mob of 3,000 Meitei assailants, some with sophisticated weapons, launched an attack on the Kuki villages in the Khamenlok valley, over a period of three days, burning houses and rampaging the area. While the Kuki villagers escaped to the hills on arrival of the assailants, security forces were blocked from reaching the area by women activist groups. Finally, on the night of 13–14 June, while the assailants were celebrating in a church building, the Kuki villagers descended from the hills and carried out a killing of the Meitei mobs that attacked them. The official death count was nine people, but unofficial estimates were in excess of 200 people.Vijaita Singh, Iboyaima Laithangbam, Retaliatory strike by village guards leaves nine dead in Manipur, The Hindu, 14 June 2023. Updated 15 June 2023, 10:17 IST.Massacre at Khamenlok: Kuki leader claims they killed over 200 Meiteis, Northeast Affairs, 27 July 2023. Even with the official figures, it was described by a newspaper as the "highest toll in a single incident" during the Manipur conflict.
Background Manipur violence The 2023–2025 Manipur violence broke out on 3 May 2023, soon after a protest rally held by the tribal communities of Manipur. Starting out as clashes between the Meitei and Kuki (tribal) communities of Manipur at the border between Churachandpur and Bishnupur districts, the ethnic violence soon spun out of control engulfing the whole state. All the Meiteis living in the hill districts dominated by Kukis fled their homes and the Kukis living in the Imphal Valley did likewise, causing widespread displacement of over 60,000 people lasting a whole year while the violence continued unabated. The Meitei community has developed organised militias such as Arambai Tenggol and Meitei Leepun, which looted state police armouries to gain advanced weaponry, and used it to wage war against the tribal districts inhabited by Kukis.The Kukis, who possess licensed guns due to their hunting occupation, attempted to organise "village defence volunteers", while the security forces created "buffer zones" to keep the two sides apart. Both the sides possessed insurgent groups, whose role in the violence remained unclear.
Khamenlok valley The Kangpokpi District, which surrounds the northern Imphal Valley on three sides, is mainly inhabited by Kukis. The jurisdiction of the Valley districts (Imphal West and Imphal East) has been extended over the decades to include the river valleys that feed into Imphal, thus encroaching into the hill areas which otherwise belonged to the Kangpokpi district. These extensions are controversial, causing uncertain borders between the valley districts and Kangpokpi district.Vijaita Singh, Several hill villages in Manipur wrongly included in valley districts: ST panel, The Hindu, 11 September 2023. "A report by the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) has observed that several hill villages in Manipur were wrongly included in the valley districts during the Census 2011 exercise."
A portion of the Iril River valley (also called Saikul Valley) has been part of Imphal East since 1971, but the census map of 2001 shows it extending almost up to the border of the Saikul Town. The Khamenlok valley is a branch valley of the Saikul Valley, extending from a village called Uyumpok. Near the mouth of the valley is a Meitei village called Nongsum, and, next to it, a Tangkhul Naga village called Khongbal Tangkhul (population: 415). These two are included in the Imphal East district. The remainder of the Khamenlok Valley has numerous Kuki villages, which are part of the Kangpokpi district. These are, in order, H. Khopibung, Khamenlok, Chullouphai, Aigejang, A. Leikot, A. Phainom, Thombol, T. Jordanphai, Songjang and Govajang (total population: 1815).Kaybie Chongloi, Manipur: Khamenlok area chiefs 'call bluff' on reports of violence against Meiteis, EastMojo, 17 June 2023.
Within the Imphal East district, Uyumpok is a large village with numerous sub-villages (total population: 2899), and to its north is Sagolmang (population: 967). Sagolmang has a police station, whose jurisdiction extends to the Khamenlok Valley, even though the latter is in a different revenue district.Prabin Kalita, Man killed in Manipur as guv visits relief camp in district, The Times of India, 13 June 2023. "Although part of another district, the area is under the jurisdiction of Imphal East Police." Thus, the Imphal East police were responsible for law and order in the Khamenlok area. They were also the main source of news for the media.
During the month of May 2023, the villagers of Nongsum complained of firing and intimidation by the Kuki villagers of Khamenlok. One village defence volunteer said that the villagers "will stay firm and take the fight to the Kuki militants".Nongshum villagers seek Govt's intervention, The Sangai Express, 27 May 2023.
Clashes 12 June On Monday, 12 June, by 10:45 am, armed assailants raided the Khopibung and Khamenlok villages, firing at the "group of civilians", and setting houses on fire. By the time Assam Rifles and Gorkha Rifles troops arrived at the village, the gunmen are said to have fled the area. The Times of India report said that three people were injured.Man killed in Manipur as guv visits relief camp in district, The Times of India, 13 June 2023. Other news reported that clashes continued till late evening, and nine people were injured in total, receiving bullet wounds.Manipur: Violence erupts once again, exchange of fire between militants and villagers, 9 injured, Weekly Blitz, 13 June 2023. Manipur Turmoil: Fierce gunfight at Khamenlok, nine injured, Imphal Free Press, 12 June 2023. The Imphal Free Press provided the information that, as soon as the news about the gun battle was circulated, "women folks" (Meira Paibis) in the Khurai Lamlong Keithel area (a suburb of Imphal City on the route to Khamenlok) blocked the roads, so that the (central) armed forces could not reach the area. Indian Reserve Battalion (IRB) commandos, made up of Meitei personnel, are said to have reached the spot, however.
In contradiction to the above reports, Sagolmang police claimed that "suspected Kuki militants" from Khopibung and Khamenlok villages were attacking the Nongsum village, and that the latter's "village volunteers" were defending themselves, despite admitting that the gunfight was taking place at the Khamenlok village. Having reproduced these claims, the Imphal Free Press corrected itself two days later by admitting that the Kuki villages were "already ... burnt down by village volunteers".Three more villages burned down in Khamenlok area, Imphal Free Press, 14 June 2023. This portrayal of "Kuki militants" and "(Meitei) village volunteers" was later criticised by the Indian Army, which said that the (Meitei) assailants were a "mob".Manipur FIRs: Nearly 2 months before Editors Guild report, army letter pointed to 3 cases, ‘media bias’, Newslaundry, 12 September 2023.
The chief of Khopibung also criticised the Imphal media reports stating that the Kuki villagers were "scattered" (fled from the villages into the hills) and he was having to spend great efforts for gathering them again. He also revealed that four Kuki village volunteers had received bullet injuries.
13–14 June On 13 June, an estimated mob of 3,000 people went to attack the Khamenlok valley, some carrying sophisticated weapons. According to the Imphal Free Press, after a few hours of firing, the villages Khopibung, Khamenlok, Aigejang and Chullouphai were burnt down. However, the village chiefs of the area said that all the Kuki villages in Khamenlok valley sustained destruction. Meitei women's groups again blocked roads and also blew up mobile towers, so that armed forces could not reach the area, and communications also became unavailable.
Late in the night, after 10 pm, while the Meitei mobs were celebrating or resting, Kuki villagers descended from the hills and attacked the Meiteis. They were described as coming with guns, spears, daggers, cleavers and other traditional weapons. Early reports the next day said that eleven Meiteis were killed, and 23 Meiteis were injured.IANS, Militants gun down 11 people in Manipur, Nagaland Post, 14 June 2023. Top news of the day: Gujarat government moves 47,000 people to safety ahead of Cyclone Biparjoy's landfall; Madras High Court judge recuses himself from hearing habeas corpus plea of T.N. Minister Senthilbalaji's wife, and more, The Hindu, 14 June 2023. Later, the figures were revised down to nine killed and ten injured. In addition, five people were declared to be missing. In contrast to the official narrative, the Kuki village chiefs said "scores of well-armed Meiteis" were killed. The General Secretary of Kuki People's Alliance estimated that 200–300 Meiteis might have been killed, based on the number of weapons the Kukis recovered from the victims.Zalengam : WMC sets record straight, The Sangai Express, 31 July 2023.
The nine people who were officially declared killed, came from villages in valley districts such as Leimakhong, Khurai, Pangei and Ningthemcha. They also included a 32-year-old woman. None of them were local to the Khamenlok region.9 killed, 10 injured in bloodiest day of Manipur ethnic clashes, The Times of India, 15 June 2023. The Hindu described the Kuki attack as a "retaliatory strike by village guards", while the Imphal-based media continued calling them "Kuki militants", who supposedly attacked "(Meitei) village volunteers".Manipur Violence: Murder in church, nine killed, Imphal Free Press, 14 June 2023.
The official narrative said that the nine Meitei people killed were in a church building in the village of Aigejang. The surviving victims claimed that they had gone to deliver food to the Meitei mobs, while the Meitei fighters themselves were supposedly at other locations.
Aftermath On 20 June, thousands of Kuki villagers including those from the Khamenlok area protested in Saikul, saying ten villages of Khamenlok were burnt down. They questioned the prime minister's silence and sought his immediate intervention.Saikul protests torching of Khamenlok's villages, seeks PM's intervention, Northeast Live, 20 June 2023.
On 24 June, a memorial was held for the nine Meitei people killed in the clash. The Meitei activist group Eramdam Kanba Lup (EKAL) urged the government to declare Khamenlok a Protected Forest and to establish a "war cemetery" for the killed fighters. The president of the Meetei Peace Committee emphasised upholding the "spirit of patriotism" embodied in the nine fighters and the responsibility to safeguard "Manipur's integrity".Ritual performed for Khamenlok attack victims, Imphal Free Press, 24 June 2023.
Previously, the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), characterised the Kuki fighters as "narco-terrorists" and declared that the sacrifices made by Meitei civilian volunteers would not go in vain.Expose those instigating the crisis: COCOMI, The Sangai Express, 15 June 2023. The Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum countered the narrative, and questioned how the supposedly innocent civilians die in tribal Kuki-Zo villages.How do those supposedly innocent civilians die in tribal Kuki-Zo villages on June 13; asks ITLF, The Hills Journal, 15 June 2023.