New Delhi - At least six separatist militants were killed in
separate gunbattles with security forces in India's north-eastern
states of Assam and Manipur, a news report said Sunday.
While two militants were killed in Assam on Sunday, four rebels
were shot dead in Manipur since Saturday, the PTI news agency
reported quoting officials sources. No soldier or policeman was
wounded in the encounters.
Two militants from the banned Karbi Longri National Liberation
Front (KLNLF) were killed in the gunbattle with the army in the Karbi
Anglong district, over 350 kilometres east of state capital Guwahati.
The KLNLF, a rebel group fighting for an independent homeland for
the majority Karbi tribe in the area, has alleged that security
forces were 'indulging in fake encounters and killing innocent
people.'
To protest the killings, the outfit has called for a shutdown in
the district on July 1.
In Manipur, the first encounter took place in the Kwakta area in
the central Bishnupur district during operations led by a joint
police and paramilitary team on Saturday.
During the encounter, two unidentified militants were killed. Some
arms and ammunition were recovered after the shoot-out.
In another gunbattle between police commandos and armed rebels in
neighbouring Imphal district, a militant was shot dead, the report
said.
A militant belonging to the Kuki National Front (KNF) was killed
in combat with the Assam Rifles troopers in the Senapati district.
Manipur which is among India's smallest states has a population of
over 2.3 million inhabitants. More than 19 militant groups are active
in Manipur, a state bordering Myanmar, with demands ranging from
secession to greater autonomy.
More than 375 people, including civilians, were killed in the
militancy-related violence in the troubled state last year.
India's north-east is a volatile region where nearly 40
separatist, tribal or leftist groups are active in five states. More
than 15,000 people have lost their lives to insurgencies in the
region in the past decade.
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