Shoes, caps, boots 'surrendered' for Manipur's weapons amnesty

Around 17% of arms looted from armouries around the state in May 2023 and the months that followed; country-made mortars and bombs; walkie-talkie sets; shoes; airguns; and a knee-cap and a sleeping bag: these are among the looted weapons surrendered during the two-week-long amnesty offered by Manipur governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla between February 20 and March 6.

- Prawesh Lama

NEW DELHI:

Security officials familiar with the matter said that not all of the 1,077 weapons surrendered till Friday morning were among those looted, suggesting that many of the 6,500 weapons and 600,000 rounds of ammunition looted from armouries are still with civilians and militant groups. The weapons were looted following the breakout of ethnic violence in the state at different times in May, June and August 2023. The most recent was on February 9, 2025, when mobs looted at least nine guns and ammunition in the state's Thoubal district.

Manipur police will now try to match the surrendered weapons with the looted ones, not an easy task given that serial numbers and markings have been tampered with in many cases. They will also try and make sense of the stockpile of surrendered items, significant and insignificant, country-made and foreign weapons, and things that are easily available online or in local markets.

With the bulk of the weapons still in hands of civilians and militant groups, security forces are awaiting the governor's directions on the future course of actions.