Assam: 3 Hmar militants killed, cops injured in encounter

Silchar (Assam): At least three suspected Hmar militants were killed and three police personnel were injured in a fierce encounter in Cachar district of Assam on Wednesday, officials said.

The deceased militants were part of a larger group, which was preparing to carry out “subversive activities” along the Assam-Manipur border areas, a senior police officer said.

“In an early morning operation, @cacharpolice killed 3 Hmar militants from Assam and neighbouring Manipur. Police also seized 2 AK rifles, 1 other rifle and 1 pistol,” Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said in a post on X.

Addressing a press conference later, Cachar SP Numal Mahatta said police received an input regarding movement of suspected militants at Krishnapur road area.

“A police team rushed to the location. Three persons were arrested along with sophisticated weapons near Ganganagar while on way towards Bhuban Hills in an autorickshaw,” he said. Mahatta said as per preliminary investigation, the apprehended trio were members of a Hmar extremist organisation and trained cadres. Two of them were from Cachar and one was from Churachandpur in Manipur. From them, one AK-47 rifle, a single-barrel rifle and one pistol were recovered along with live ammunition, he said.

“During interrogation, they revealed that some of their cadres were hiding in a nearby jungle in Bhuban Hills and planning to carry out some subversive activities along the Assam-Manipur border with a huge cache of arms,” the SP said. Subsequently, a special operation was launched led by the district additional SP along with commandos on the Bhuban Hills side for apprehending more militants on the basis of inputs provided by the three arrested insurgents, who accompanied the security forces.