Manipur Police have arrested six members of the Arambai Tenggol (AT), a radical Meitei group, for their alleged involvement in the assault of police personnel in Bishnupur district last month.

The number of AT members arrested in connection with the alleged assault has gone up to eight.

The assault took place on June 9 during the shutdown called by the Arambai Tenggol in protest against the arrest of one of its leaders.

The police in a statement on X on Wednesday said the six AT members were arrested on Tuesday, four of whom hail from Imphal West district and the remaining two from Bishnupur district.

The police said they “were involved in (the) physical assault on (an) officer and personnel of Manipur Police during a bandh in Bishnupur district on 09.06.2025”.

The arrested quartet from Imphal West district included Laishram Sanahal Singh, 26, Laishram Rishikanta Singh, 20, Laishram Premchand, 18, and Sarangthem Rabichandra, 28. Those hailing from Bishnupur are Kangabam Nongdamba Singh, 23, and Yumnam Jaswant Singh, 22.

A mob had allegedly attacked an additional superintendent of police (ASP) and his team in Bishnupur’s Nambol on June 9 during the 10-day shutdown called last month in protest against the arrest of a senior AT leader, Asem Kanan. The shutdown had brought life to a standstill in Meitei-majority Imphal Valley. Kanan was arrested by the CBI from the Imphal airport the previous day.

The police had registered a suo motu case under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS).

The arrest in the assault case is the second major crackdown on the AT since June.

The police had also arrested six Arambai Tenggol members, in connection with the disappearance of a 29-year-old differently-abled Meitei Pangal man and the subsequent recovery of his body from Imphal West district, last month.

Flying squads formed

Flying squads comprising key stakeholders have been formed to ensure peaceful farming during the ongoing kharif season in fringe areas of Manipur’s Bishnupur district.

Deputy commissioner Pooja Elangbam announced the move during a District Level Security Coordination Committee meeting. The DC urged all officers to respond swiftly in case of any untoward incident and appealed for regular visits to fringe areas.

Cultivation in farming fields of Bishnupur district especially in fringe areas near the hill district of Churachandpur was severely affected when violence broke out in 2023. However, with gradual improvement of law and order, farming has resumed in many places. Still, periodic gun attack have often disrupted farming and farmers remained reluctant to cultivate in fringe areas without proper security.

Additional reporting by PTI