The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested three insurgents in connection with the deadly ambush on security forces in Manipur’s Tengnoupal district earlier last year, which claimed the lives of two police commandos and left several others injured. According to official sources, the arrested individuals were directly involved in planning and executing the January 17, 2024, attack on an Indian Reserve Battalion (IRB) outpost in Moreh, a volatile town situated along the India-Myanmar border. The coordinated assault was reportedly carried out by a coalition of insurgent groups aiming to destabilise the region.
“The suspects behind the attack were rounded up over a period of two weeks. We arrested them in connection with other cases but during the course of interrogation, their involvement in the deadly attack surfaced,” said an NIA official.
One of the key accused, Thangminlen Mate, a resident of Tengnoupal and a member of the Kuki Inpi Tengnoupal group, was arrested from Silchar, Assam, on May 19, 2025. He has been remanded in judicial custody by the NIA court in Guwahati until May 28 and is currently being held at the Guwahati Central Jail.
On June 6, the NIA arrested two more suspects in Imphal — Kamginthang Gangte, a member of the Kuki National Army, and Hentinthang Kipgen, also known as Thangneo Kipgen, affiliated with the Village Volunteers group in Churachandpur district. Both individuals have been placed under transit remand until June 9 and are expected to be presented before the NIA Special Court in Guwahati.
Investigators believe all three played integral roles in executing the January ambush and are part of a broader insurgent network active in Manipur and surrounding regions.
In a parallel investigation, the NIA has also filed a chargesheet against three Mizoram residents—Vanlaldailova, Lalmuanpuia, and Lalrinchhunga alias Albert—for alleged involvement in arms trafficking. The trio was arrested on December 6, 2024, after raids at their residences led to the recovery of illegal arms and explosives.
Authorities revealed that the arrested individuals were actively engaged in supplying weapons to extremist groups operating in the Northeast. They are also accused of fundraising for terror-related activities, further aggravating ethnic tensions and posing a significant threat to national security.
The NIA continues to investigate the nexus between arms traffickers and insurgent outfits amid ongoing efforts to dismantle networks fueling unrest in the region.
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