Gunmen open fire on vehicle in Manipur: 4 killed in Churachandpur, including elderly woman

NEW DELHI: At least four people, including a 60-year-old woman, were killed on Monday afternoon after unidentified gunmen opened fire on a vehicle near Mongjang village in Manipur’s Churachandpur district, police said, PTI reported.

The ambush occurred around 2 pm when the victims were travelling in a car roughly 7 km from Churachandpur town. According to officials, the attackers fired at close range. “Preliminary investigation suggests they were shot from point-blank range,” a senior police officer at the Churachandpur district headquarters said.

The identities of the deceased are yet to be confirmed. Police recovered more than a dozen empty cartridges from the scene, indicating the attackers used automatic weapons.

No group has claimed responsibility for the shooting. Authorities said the motive behind the attack remains unclear.

Following the incident, police and additional security forces were deployed to the area to secure the site and begin search operations.

The killings come amid continued ethnic tensions and sporadic violence in the state, which has seen several outbreaks of conflict since May 2023.