 "2021 Nagaland killings and after: How Indian forces have won Naga hearts with healing touch")
The death of a near and dear one is perhaps the saddest event in a human being’s life. The incident on 4 December 2021, when 13 innocent villagers of a remote hamlet in Nagaland’s Oting were gunned down, will go down in history as one of the darkest days for India. The pain will endure for a very long time, and the name of the remote village, Oting, will be in the pages of every history book forever.
But the fact of the matter is that Oting was an aberration. The 21 Para (Special Force) were incorrectly provided intelligence about insurgent movement in the area. The force, perhaps without following the correct “Standard Operating Procedures” killed innocent villagers in Mon’s Oting.
Oting is a remote village in Nagaland’s Mon district. The road to the village snaked querulously and in a manner that seemed unwelcoming. But it was necessary to visit Oting to learn about the goings-on and the latest situation in the ill-fated hamlet that had—almost two years ago—launched a “thousand mutiny” and had almost set a nation afire.
Therefore, on 14 September 2023, this author set out to see for how the fateful incident took place and how the families of the victims are coming to terms with the episode that took away their loved ones 22 malicious months ago.
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View AllDriving down from the Assam Rifles tactical headquarters in Mon to Oting, this author was gripped with a queer sense of sadness and trepidation. The manner in which the populace of Nagaland had literally “boycotted” the Indian army and the Assam Rifles in the aftermath of the incident for six long months was alarming. And, one feared the worst. Brickbats and the razor, perhaps! But, the almost sea-change that one witnessed in Oting was awe-inspiring. The scars have not left, but the anger has disappeared.
Limping from house to house of the victims and meeting a few who were grievously injured in the incident, one expected rage and fury. Instead, there was forgiveness. It was one of the most difficult situations to fathom.
Newly constructed water tanks and play grounds can be seen in the village and a genuine effort by the “Sentinels of the East” to atone for the mistake was in evidence. Lest the reader felt that there was no anger in the immediate aftermath of the 4 December 2021 incident, it must be retold that the villagers burnt down the Assam Rifles tactical headquarters in Mon on the evening of the incident. But the force showed great restraint and did not open fire on the mob. It necessitated great leadership quality from both Shillong and Kohima where the Director General of the Assam Rifles and the Inspector General of the Assam Rifles (North) were billeted. One could have thought of numerous other occasions when a massacre would have taken place. But the leadership held the hand of their men and carnage was avoided.
On the day this author visited Oting, there was no sign of that fateful evening. Yes, there was Phojem, 32, with a crutch; Sheiwang, with a scar in his right eye; and, of course, Yeihwang, who continues to be in a state of partial paralysis with splinters still embedded in his head. Yeihwang just laid on his wooden bench.
The Assam Rifles has achieved the impossible. Once back flags used to greet the force when they used to visit the village. But the healing touch and, more importantly, the genuineness of the Assam rifles have been felt by the victims and the families of Oting, and now the black flags have been replaced with the tri-colour. In sum, the incredible has been realised in Oting. The Indian nation must be grateful to this noble force.
The author is a Conflict Theorist and Bestselling Author. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost_’s views._
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