"Indomitable Courage": 2 BSF Soldiers Killed In Ethnic Violence-Hit Manipur Awarded Gallantry Medals

Two Border Security Force soldiers who were killed in action and one who was injured in ethnic violence-hit Manipur were awarded the police medal for gallantry on the eve of Independence Day.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in a statement said the awardees include the two constables, Narender Kumar and Ranjit Yadav, and Assistant Commandant Ashok Kumar, apart from three other BSF personnel.

Narender Kumar (posthumously) and his senior, Ashok Kumar, have been decorated with the medal for "displaying indomitable courage with utter disregard to personal safety and devotion beyond call of duty" during violent clashes with protesters on May 28, 2023 in the border town Moreh in Tamenglong district, the MHA said in a statement.

A BSF unit was deployed in Moreh after clashes broke out between the valley-dominant Meitei community and nearly two dozen tribes under the Kuki umbrella, who are settled in the hill areas in southern Manipur and a few other areas.

The two BSF personnel were controlling a mob that was "hell-bent" on burning down a hotel, the citation reads. A bullet hit Narender Kumar on the head while Ashok Kumar was hit in the hand, it said. Narender Kumar died the next day.

The citation said the BSF soldier went beyond the call of duty and not only saved the lives of his colleagues, but also prevented miscreants from going "on a rampage, burning and plundering houses" of villagers.

Constable Ranjit Yadav, 36, of the BSF's 163rd Battalion was deployed at the sentry post of a school in Kakching district. His citation said some armed people fired at his position in the early hours of June 6, 2023, killing him on the spot.

"The jawan displayed gallant and indomitable courage with utter disregard to personal safety and saved the life of fellow soldiers beyond call of duty and laid down his life for the cause of the nation," the citation said.

The BSF, with 2.65 lakh personnel in its ranks, is primarily tasked with guarding the borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh, apart from other duties in the country's internal security domain.

At present, a unified command comprising all the security forces including the state police are looking after Manipur's security set-up.

The clashes between the Meiteis and nearly two dozen tribes known as Kukis - a term given by the British in colonial times - has killed over 220 people and internally displaced nearly 50,000.

The general category Meiteis want to be included under the Scheduled Tribes category, while the nearly two dozen tribes that share ethnic ties with people in neighbouring Myanmar's Chin State and Mizoram want a separate administration carved out of Manipur, citing discrimination and unequal share of resources and power with the Meiteis.