Guwahati: In a major counter-insurgency operation, four militants belonging to the United Kuki National Army (UKNA) were killed in an encounter with security forces in Manipur’s Churachandpur district early on Tuesday.

Officials confirmed that the clash occurred in the early hours of 4 November during an intelligence‑based mission codenamed ‘Operation Khanpi’. The gunfight broke out when insurgents opened unprovoked fire on an Army column near Khanpi village, located about 80 kilometres west of Churachandpur.


Security forces swiftly retaliated, resulting in a fierce firefight that led to the neutralisation of four armed cadres of the non‑Suspension of Operations (non‑SoO) group. The joint team of the Indian Army and Assam Rifles is continuing the search of surrounding forested areas to ensure the zone is fully sanitised.

The UKNA had been operating outside the SoO framework since 2023, after the Manipur government withdrew its ceasefire agreement with the group over its alleged role in the state’s ongoing ethnic violence. Officials said the operation demonstrates the armed forces’ resolve to protect civilian populations and dismantle insurgent networks that threaten regional stability.

The latest engagement follows the killing of Mangthang Haokip, chief of T Khonomphai village in Henglep subdivision, by UKNA cadres last week. His death had heightened tensions across the district, prompting intensified intelligence efforts and rapid deployment of security personnel in known militant zones.

In the past two days alone, security forces have arrested 18 extremists affiliated with various banned organisations across Manipur. The operations are part of a broader crackdown on militant activity amid persistent instability in the state’s hill districts.

Relations among Kuki‑Zo insurgent factions also remain volatile. On 22 July, a violent fratricidal clash between UKNA and the Chin Kuki Mizo Army (CKMA) in Manipur’s Noney district claimed at least five lives among CKMA fighters.

Since the eruption of ethnic violence on 3 May 2023 between the tribal Kuki‑Zo and the non‑tribal Meitei communities, Manipur has witnessed over 260 deaths and more than a thousand injuries.

The conflict, which followed a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ protesting the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe status, has displaced more than 60,000 people—many of whom remain in relief camps nearly twenty months later.

Security agencies continue coordinated operations across affected districts, focusing on disarming non‑SoO groups, recovering illegal weapon caches, and restoring peace in the violence‑torn state.

Agencies