Protests broke out outside a hospital in Manipur’s Imphal on Monday after three Kuki men injured in a firing incident in the Kangpokpi district were taken there for treatment, prompting security forces to use tear gas and lathi charge to force the crowd to disperse, The Hindu reported.

The mob objected to their treatment, alleging that they were extremists and shouted slogans against security forces for transporting them to the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences.

The three injured persons, all from the Kuki community, were initially taken to the 183 Military Hospital at Leimakhong before being referred to the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences in Imphal for further treatment.

In a statement issued after the protests, the hospital said that it bears the responsibility to provide medical care to all patients brought for treatment.

“It is the professional, ethical, and humanitarian duty of doctors and healthcare workers to attend to and treat patients requiring medical attention, irrespective of their background or circumstances,” the hospital said.

The statement urged the public not to obstruct hospital operations, warning that disturbances could cause harm to critically ill and emergency patients.

In a separate statement, the institute also condemned the use of mock bombs and smoke bombs within the hospital premises during the protest.

On Tuesday, the hospital authorities said that all departments and services were functioning normally and appealed to the public not to disrupt healthcare services.

The three men were injured in a firing incident between two armed groups in the Kangpokpi district on Monday.

The clash took place around 6 am near the border between Leilon Vaiphei, a Kuki-majority village, and Konsakhul, a Naga-majority village, Hindustan Times reported.

Residents of Konsakhul alleged they were working in paddy fields when armed men opened fire, prompting the Naga Village Guard to retaliate.

Security forces intervened about 40 minutes later and evacuated the injured persons.

The injured were identified as Genlenmang Vaiphei, 18, Lunliandaw Vaiphei, 20 and Paogou Lal, 18, India Today reported.

Kuki organisations rejected the allegations that those injured were “extremists” and said they were students who also served as village volunteers, The Hindu reported.

The Kuki Inpi Manipur, an apex Kuki body, condemned what it described as the “bombing” of Leilon Vaiphei village and alleged that the attack had been carried out by the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah) and the Kamson faction of the Zeliangrong United Front, Economic Times reported.

The developments came amid tensions between Kukis and Nagas in Ukhrul that had erupted on February 7 after an alleged assault involving members of the Tangkhul Naga and the Kuki-Zo communities escalated into clashes. At least 25 persons from the two communities have been killed since tensions erupted.

The fresh violence came after the bodies of six men from the Naga community, who had been abducted by a Kuki armed group on May 13, were recovered on June 10. The police said that an investigation into the deaths was underway.

On May 13, at least 48 civilians from the Kuki and Naga communities were taken hostage by armed groups in the state’s Kangpokpi and Senapati districts.

The abductions had taken place after three church leaders were killed and five others injured when the vehicles they were travelling in were ambushed while they were returning from a meeting in Churachandpur to Kangpokpi. Another civilian was also killed and his wife wounded in Noney district.

On May 15, the police said that 28 of the persons who had been abducted were released.

On Tuesday, the United Naga Council said that 14 Kuki hostages had been released on “humanitarian grounds”.