Three top Manipuri rebels die in road accident

Kolkata : Three top leaders of the banned Manipuri separatist group, People's Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK), including its acting chairman Khumujam Ratan, have died in a road accident.

One of Manipur's most wanted rebel, Ratan, 58, had three more aliases in police record -- Sathy, Hera and Awangba Meitei.

The two other rebel leaders killed were Mayengbam Joychand (3 aliases -- Joy Luwang, Chamba and Michael) who was organising secretary of the outfit and 'General Staff Officer 1' R.K. Ramananda (alias -- Basan, Rozer and Bijoy Gobinda).

A PREPAK press note said, "the untimely demise of the three cadres has left an irreparable loss" to the outfit.

But it did not disclose the exact spot and circumstances leading to the accident.

The PREPAK statement said that Ratan had joined the outfit in March 1982 and was appointed as its acting chairman in November 2014. He was a treasurer of CorCom, the three-group rebel platform of Manipur.

Mayengbam and Ramananda joined the outfit in 1994 and 1996 respectively, according to PREPAK.

Mayengbam was a standing member of CorCom's home committee.

The outfit said that Michael and RK Rozer took over the charge of organisation secretary and GSO-1 of the party in June 2011 and November 2014 respectively.

PREPAK has dissolved its central committee due to the death of acting chairman Ratan, a veteran of Manipur insurgency and a close associate of its founder R.K. Tulachandra.

Its statement said that Aheiba Angom has been appointed as the chairman and finance secretary of the the 5 member Interim Council (IC) unanimously.

The Interim Council will supervise the party functioning until a new Central Committee is floated, it added.