Police in Manipur on Friday arrested altogether 12 militants from the official residences of three MLAs of the ruling Congress.

They also recovered a disassembled rifle, two revolvers and several extortion notices from the legislators’ residences.

The Congress heads a coalition government in Manipur and the police action has put the party in a tight spot.
Director-General of Police (DGP) Y Joykumar Singh said that a team of police raided the official residences of three MLAs following a tip-off by the intelligence agencies.

He said eight militants of the proscribed Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL) were arrested from the official residence of W Brajabidhu Singh in the high-security Babupara area of the capital-town Imphal.

A disassembled M-16 rifle, two 9 mm pistols and bullets were recovered from the septic tank of the MLA’s residence.

The police also found in the legislator’s residence several extortion notices that were to be sent to the leading businessmen of the town, the DGP said.

Two militants of the outlawed Kangleipak Communist Party (KCP) and People’s Liberation Army (PLA) were arrested from the official residence of another Congress MLA, K Meghachandra Singh. Besides, two other militants — one of the proscribed People’s Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK) and another of the KCP – were arrested from the residences of the ruling party’s MLA Bijoy Koijam and former MLA N Sovakiran.

Cases against MLAs

The DGP said the police have registered cases against the MLAs too.The police raids on the Congress MLAs’ residences in Imphal have added to the party’s troubles in the region. In Assam, the BJP and other Opposition political parties have been accusing the ruling Congress of having a nexus with the proscribed ULFA.

Manipur is infested with countless militant outfits that run multiple parallel governments.