Assam Rifles jawan fires at colleagues injuring 6, shoots himself: Manipur cops

A personnel of the Assam Rifles opened fire on his colleagues, injuring six of them in south Manipur. The jawan then shot himself, Manipur Police said in a statement.

The incident took place in the Sajik Tampak area late on Tuesday. The injured, none of whom are from Manipur, have been shifted to the Military Hospital for treatment and are stable. An investigation has been ordered into the incident.

The Manipur Police, however, said the incident was not related to the ongoing ethnic strife in the state and asked citizens to avoid any speculation.

“In light of the ongoing ethnic strife in Manipur, it is important to share the details of the incident transparently to dispel any potential rumours and avoid any speculation. This unfortunate incident should not be correlated with ongoing conflict, given the fact that none of the injured are from Manipur,” the police said.

“All Assam Rifles battalions have mixed class composition, including those belonging to various communities in Manipur. All personnel have been staying and operating together despite polarisation of society to maintain peace and stability in Manipur,” the statement further said.

Last year, in October, an Army Major reportedly opened fire at his fellow soldiers at a forward base near the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir. A few soldiers were injured in the incident.

The incident took place in the Army’s 48 Rashtriya Rifles unit and took place in Rajouri’s Thanamandi area. The Major was apprehended.