Wrong target, fatal outcome: Henglep operation kills Kuki civilian as violence continues unchecked in Senapati, Noney, Kamjong, Ukhrul, and Kangpokpi
By Sasang Haokip, Songpi, June 19, 2026
Modi and the Indian Army must confront the hard truth about Manipur’s ongoing crisis: the conflict is concentrated in Leimakhong in Kangpokpi, Kamjong, Noney, Senapati, and Ukhrul districts. Yet despite this clear ground reality, COBRA units of the CRPF were deployed to Henglep in Churachandpur district on June 16, 2026. That decision reflects a grave misreading of the conflict map, and it cost the life of Lenminsang Haokip, an innocent Kuki civilian who had no ties to any armed group and was simply residing in his village.
The killings of pastors and civilians, the burning of entire villages, and repeated incidents of hostage-taking continue to be reported from Senapati, Noney, Kamjong, and Kangpokpi districts. These areas remain extremely volatile and dangerous for ordinary families trying to survive each day. Henglep in Churachandpur, however, has not been the epicenter of these coordinated attacks. Deploying COBRA commandos to that area ignores where violence actually persists and diverts critical security forces away from the real flashpoints that urgently require intervention and protection.
Deploying heavy state firepower in Henglep raises profound and disturbing questions about both operational intent and intelligence failure at the highest levels of command. Communities already living under constant threat and fear are being further punished through misdirected military operations. Meanwhile, districts like Ukhrul, Noney, Tamenglong, Senapati, Kangpokpi, and Kamjong, where armed groups are known to operate openly and launch frequent attacks, continue to face little meaningful pressure from security forces. This dangerous mismatch undermines the entire security strategy and erodes public trust in the state’s ability to govern impartially.
I strongly condemn Modi and the COBRA CRPF for the killing of a civilian in Henglep on June 16. Lenminsang Haokip was neither a village volunteer nor a member of any armed group. He was entirely civilian, unarmed, and had no role whatsoever in the conflict. When state forces open fire on unarmed civilians inside their own villages, it constitutes a direct breach of constitutional duty, violates the fundamental right to life guaranteed to every citizen of India, and amounts to a total human rights violation under domestic and international law.
When government troops themselves become agents of terror against a minority community, the state’s claim to impartial governance completely collapses. Using elite commando units like COBRA to fire on civilians in the wrong location is a failed mission on every conceivable level. Such an operation cannot be justified under the doctrine of counter-insurgency. It is state-sponsored violence directed against citizens who had no involvement in the conflict and were only trying to live peacefully in their ancestral homes.
File Photo: Lenminsang Haokip of Henglep, Churachandpur. Died June 16, 2026 during a COBRA CRPF operation conducted in the wrong district.
Modi’s policy towards Manipur has completely failed the Kuki community and has significantly worsened the humanitarian crisis on the ground. The current security approach appears deeply skewed and biased, demonstrating clear favoritism toward Tangkhul and Meitei community interests while Kuki areas continue to endure raids, harassment, and extrajudicial killings. Sending COBRA to Henglep instead of Kamjong, Ukhrul, Noney, Senapati, or Leimakhong in Kangpokpi district proves that the government’s operational priorities do not align with the actual geography of where the conflict is raging.
Accountability must follow these wrongful killings without any further delay. Those who issued the orders to send COBRA into Henglep and those who pulled the trigger that killed Lenminsang Haokip on June 16 must be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Without impartial legal action and without an honest, public acknowledgment of where the conflict truly lies, no peace imposed at gunpoint by security forces can ever be sustainable, legitimate, or acceptable to the people of Manipur.
The government must immediately withdraw forces from Kuki villages that are not active conflict zones and redeploy them to areas where armed violence is occurring every single day. Until Modi corrects this fatal misdirection of resources, manpower, and strategy, every operation conducted in the wrong place and wrong district will only deepen historical wounds, increase community mistrust, and destroy any remaining possibility of achieving lasting peace and reconciliation in Manipur.
