NSCN (I-M) Accuses BSF of Relocating Kuki Extremists to Naga Areas
Mumbai, March 25 – The National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah), or NSCN (I-M), has urged India’s Border Security Force (BSF) to stop relocating Kuki extremists and illegal immigrants to Naga-inhabited areas, escalating tensions over security operations in Manipur.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the Naga insurgent group accused the BSF of using their territories as a “dumping ground” for Kuki militants. The outfit also warned that such actions mirrored past practices by the Manipur police and Assam Rifles, which it had previously criticized for aiding Kuki extremist groups.
“The NSCN will not allow Naga areas to be used as a dumping ground for any illegal immigrants transported by India’s paramilitary forces from across the border or from any other non-Naga areas,” the statement said.
The NSCN (I-M) alleged that security forces, including the Manipur police and Assam Rifles, had facilitated the movement of Kuki militants in the past. It cited an incident in the Naga-dominated Ukhrul district, where police were allegedly caught providing materials to Kuki extremists at Molhang Kuki village. The outfit also claimed that Assam Rifles personnel had transported militants to Kamjong district, near the Myanmar border, and other locations in Manipur.
The accusations extended to the BSF, which the NSCN (I-M) claimed had recently transported illegal immigrants from Churachandpur district and dropped them at Litan village in Ukhrul. The group further alleged that BSF personnel were providing security for Kuki militant camps in the region.
“This entails a cooperative relationship between the BSF and Kuki militants, which defies logic and is a direct challenge and insult to the NSCN,” the statement read. The outfit, which has been in a ceasefire with the Indian government since 1997, said such actions undermined ongoing political negotiations to resolve the Indo-Naga conflict.
The NSCN (I-M) further accused security forces of aiding Kuki groups since the early 1990s, when it claimed the Meitei-dominated Manipur government supported Kuki militants to counter the NSCN’s influence.
The BSF has denied the allegations, stating it has not aided or transported Kuki or any other ethnicity-based extremist group in Manipur or the broader northeastern region.
