An indefinite curfew was imposed on Saturday night in Manipur’s Bishnupur district, and orders prohibiting five or more persons from gathering were implemented in Kakching, Thoubal, Imphal East and Imphal West, after a member of armed Meitei group Arambai Tenggol was arrested in Imphal West.

Internet services were also suspended in the five districts – all of them located in the state’s Meitei-dominated valley region – following the development.

A joint team of the National Investigation Agency and the Manipur Police on Saturday evening arrested Kanan Meitei, said to be the “army chief” of the Arambai Tenggol, in Imphal West, The Hindu reported. Hundreds of residents took to the streets in Imphal West’s Kwakithel area to try to stop the police convoy and snatch him from custody.

The police opened fire to force the mob to disperse.

On Sunday, Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Kh Ibomcha said that Kanan Meitei had been arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation, reported The Morning Bell. The central agency said that it had arrested an Arambai Tenggol member on Saturday but did not name him.

In addition, reports stated that Kanan Meitei had been handed over to the central agency.

Protestors also burned tyres and blocked roads in parts of the state capital, including the Tiddim road and Uripok areas in Imphal West district, demanding that Kanan Meitei be immediately released, The Indian Express reported.

The Arambai Tenggol is alleged to have orchestrated violence against the tribal Kuki-Zo community since the beginning of the ethnic violence in Manipur in May 2023. The conflict has left at least 260 dead and displaced more than 59,000.

The National Investigation Agency is looking into the alleged role of the Arambai Tenggol’s chief Korounganba Khuman in two cases about an attack on security personnel on November 1, 2023 and arms being looted from a Manipur Rifles battalion on the same day.

Also read:

In Imphal, the state’s surrender to an armed Meitei militia with ‘Taliban-like’ grip

On February 27, the Arambai Tenggol surrendered 246 weapons before security forces, as part of what was said to be the largest set of illegally-held weapons surrendered in Manipur since the conflict began.

However, two Kuki-Zomi groups – the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum and the Committee on Tribal Unity – dismissed the surrender of weapons, calling it a move to “garner sympathy and legitimacy”.

Also read: Does Arambai Tenggol’s decision to surrender arms reflect a changed reality in Manipur?