Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF) on October 26 issued press statement on the encounter that took place on October 23 at Soubunglong (Leishok) village under Khoupum Police Station, Longmai (Noney) District, Manipur wherein two armed cadres belonging to Mr. Jenchui’s gang lost two of its cadres.
ZUF termed the attack “unfortunate and regretted that the unavoidable situation occurred”. The group said that on October 23, 2020 the Zeliangrong Tiger Force (ZTF) cadres who were taking rest at Soubunglong were attacked by Mr. Jenchui’s gang cadres which had compelled the Zeliangrong Tiger Force (ZTF) with no alternative to retaliate in which two cadres who were later identified as Mr Laonuam Balang of Oktan village and Mr Gaijangam Kamei of Longmai part 5 village of Mr Jenchui’s gang had lost their lives.
The Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF) deeply mourned the untimely lost of two precious souls and shared the sorrow and pain with the bereaved family members, adding that the the death of the two in confrontation among the brothers lost their souls for “worthless cause”.
ZUF said the killing of two cadres in the clash “deserves strongest condemnation from the general public for which the Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF) has been maintaining maximum restraint respecting the feeling and sentiment of the Zeliangrong people despite provocations made by Mr. Jenchui’s gang since the day they were expelled from the Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF) for their grave mistake committed against the Zeliangrong people’s cause”, accusing Mr. Jenchui’s gang has been “resorting to different forms of sinister campaign with deliberate intention to malign the good image of Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF) by disguising and misusing the name of Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF)”, the group said.
ZUF listed “extortion, kidnapping, obstructing to developmental works in Zeliangrong areas, intimidating and threatening the people by misusing the name of Zeliangrong people for quite sometimes which is well aware by the general public” by Mr. Jenchui’s gang.
Zeliangrong United Front further added that the group has been participating in a political negotiation with India under the banner of Working Committee of the Naga National Political Groups (WC-NNPGs) after signing an Alliance Agreement with certain understanding and conditions and now the Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF) is confident that the Government of India with the support and cooperation of WC-NNPGs will consider the long cherish aspiration of Zeliangrong people as and when the Govt. of India resolve and settle the Naga political issue once and for all.
Pointing out assurances by the government of the India to Zeliangrong people in several occasions granting certain model of political arrangement during the Prime Ministership of Late Mrs Indira Gandhi and Late Mr. Rajiv Gandhi, the group said that those assurance did not guarantee fulfilment “due to the lack of political will” of past offices of the Indian government, it said.
ZUF banking high hopes on the current political dispensation of the Narendra Modi BJP government with his “strong, decisive and determined” style of Prime Ministership, and the “dynamic and vibrant Interlocutor Mr RN Ravi, long pending political issue of the Zeliangrong people will resolve along with the settlement of Naga political issue”.
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