Ukhrul, July 26: The Tangkhul Naga Long (TNL) Working Committee has warned of a civil resistance movement, alleging that repeated detention and harassment of Naga civilians by security forces are threatening the fragile peace in the region.

The warning came after four Tangkhul Naga civilians from Hungpung village were allegedly detained by Assam Rifles personnel while working in their paddy fields on Saturday evening. The TNL strongly condemned the incident as an act of harassment and excesses against innocent civilians and alleged that it formed part of a growing pattern of arrests and harassment by security forces.

The organisation also linked Saturday’s incident to an earlier episode at Sharkaphung on July 14, where four civil defence volunteers were forcibly taken into custody and subsequently charge-sheeted in Imphal. According to the TNL, the repeated incidents have created renewed fear and insecurity among Naga communities and risk undermining the peace maintained since the Naga ceasefire process began in 1997.

The latest incident occurred on July 25, when a combined security team led by personnel of the 40 Assam Rifles picked up four civilians from a paddy-field area adjacent to the Thoubal River in Lungshang Kong, Ukhrul district. The TNL said the men were treated as suspected militants despite being engaged in agricultural work.

The four were taken towards Imphal in a Casspir armoured vehicle. Villagers later intercepted the vehicle at around 6:30 p.m. at Leingangching (Laho), near Litan Police Station.

Following intervention by Tangkhul civil society organisations, the civilians were released and handed over to representatives of the Tangkhul Naga Long. Their release followed discussions with Brigadier Amit Kumar Sharma, Deputy Inspector General of Assam Rifles, 10 Sector, Somsai.

The incident was also reported to police by the Hungpung Village Administrative Council, which submitted a complaint to the Officer-in-Charge of Ukhrul Police Station on July 25. The village council identified the four as Yuimung Khapai Shimray, 28; Shomi Shokchui, 38; Hungreithei Kasomva, 37; and Khuirami KSV, 36. The complaint was entered in the Ukhrul Police Station General Diary at 8:45 p.m.

The TNL said the latest incident could not be viewed in isolation, arguing that repeated arrests and alleged harassment of civilians were creating an atmosphere of fear and insecurity. It warned that the “tolerance” of the Tangkhul Nagas had been pushed beyond permissible limits.

Invoking the history of the Naga peace process, the organisation said the fragile peace achieved following the 1997 Indo-Naga ceasefire was being threatened by growing pressure and arbitrary action against Naga civilians.

The TNL warned that continued harassment of its people could trigger a serious civil resistance movement, raising the possibility of wider civil mobilisation in the region.