It was a counter-insurgency operation in Nagaland’s Mon district that went horribly wrong and killed 15 people — 14 civilians and one jawan — over the weekend.
It all started at around 4 p.m. on Saturday, when a unit of the elite 21 Para special forces of Indian Army, led by a Major, opened fire on a pick-up van that was coming along the Tiru-Oting road in Nagaland’s Mon district, according to reports. The unit had reportedly laid an ambush for a week after intelligence reports that insurgents were planning to attack soldiers in the area. However, the pick-up van was carrying eight unarmed civilians from Oting village, who were heading back home after work in a coal mine in the Tiru area. Six of them died on the spot and the two injured were taken to the nearest hospital by the armed forces. Reports said that there were no arms or ammunition recovered from the van.
Known to be a sensitive and volatile area, Mon is the bastion of the Naga separatist group National Socialist Council of Nagaland, or the NSCN (K) and the Assam separatist organisation United Liberation Front of Asom, or the ULFA. The Mon district shares the state border with Assam and an international border with Myanmar.
Soon after the incident, angry villagers reached the spot, armed with stones and machetes, and set ablaze two security vehicles. A commando was also killed in this round of attack and seven jawans were injured. The army team opened fire in self-defence and to control the situation. At least five more villagers were killed and several others were injured.
Further, the operation was being conducted without the knowledge of the police or Assam Rifles, as the para-military force has a key role in handling insurgency in this area. In its FIR filed subsequently, the police have said that this has led them to conclude that the “intention of security forces is to murder and injure civilians”.
Soon after the situation escalated, Nagaland CM Neiphiu Rio who was in Delhi at that time, returned to the state. Condemning the incident, Rio, on Sunday prohibited all mobile internet, data services, bulk SMS of all providers in the entire area of Mon district with immediate effect to prevent rumours from spreading and the situation escalating further.
Assam Rifles issued a statement saying that the operation was based on credible intelligence of the likely movement of insurgents. According to reports, the unit of the 21 Para Special Forces has returned to its base and a Court of Inquiry has been ordered, which is being headed by a Major General.
Home Minister Amit Shah tweeted on Sunday morning that a high-level SIT constituted by the State government will investigate to ensure justice to the bereaved.
Speaking about the incident in the Parliament today, Shah added that the SIT has been formed to probe the incident and has been directed to complete the investigation within a month. Further, the Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs has met the Chief Secretary of Nagaland and inquired about the incident, he added.
The incident comes when Nagaland’s iconic Hornbill festival, an annual ten-day show is going on in the state. The festival is an annual ten-day extravaganza in which different tribes of the state showcase their traditions in the festival. It began on December 1.
According to reports, the main venue for the festival, Naga Heritage Village at Kisama, wore a deserted look on Monday as the government cancelled the day’s events in the light of the killings.
