Dimapur; October 2026: The Naga People’s Front has urged the Yimkhiung and Tikhir communities to exercise restraint, maintain peace and refrain from any act of violence or provocation amid the tense situation and reported conflict between the two communities in eastern Nagaland. In a press statement issued today, the NPF has expressed concern over the situation and said the Yimkhiung and Tikhir communities were brothers sharing the same blood, history and struggle.
Following the outbreak of violence between members of Tikhir and Yimkhiung communities, on 10th of this month - at least 23 houses were burnt and 157 people displaced in three villages under Kiusam circle in Kiphire district according to a ground assessment by the district administration. The assessment found that 12 houses were burnt and five partially damaged in Pokphur village, where a motorcycle was also burnt, displacing 60 people. In neighbouring Longtsunger, 11 houses were burnt and another vandalised, forcing 83 people to leave their homes. 14 people from Thulun village were also reported displaced at the time of the assessment.
Meanwhile, today (15th October 2026), NPF has reiterated that any conflict between the two communities was a wound inflicted on the entire Naga body, adding that violence would serve no purpose and only bring suffering to innocent villagers, insecurity to border areas and division at a time when Nagas needed unity for their collective political future. The party has reiterated its commitment to peace, unity and brotherhood, stating that dialogue, not confrontation, was the only way forward.
The Eastern Nagaland Peoples' Organisation (ENPO) has flagged alleged administrative and law-and-order lapses in the recent Yimkhiung–Tikhir violence, calling on the state government to post an extra assistant commissioner (EAC) at Kiusam and establish a police outpost there with adequate manpower.
Earlier, on Tuesday (13th October 2026) vide a press release, the ENPO said its delegation, accompanied by tribal councils, visited the affected areas and held separate consultations with the Yimkhiung and Tikhir tribal councils at their respective headquarters on October 11 and 12.
During its peace mission tour to the affected headquarters, the ENPO also observed serious lapses on the part of the administrative machinery in governance and in maintenance of law and order ENPO has said, adding that the conflict could have been avoided. It has also pointed to shortages of manpower and facilities in the administration and police establishment, and called for their immediate redress. Kiusam is currently under the charge of the EAC at Pungro, the organisation highlighted, seeking an immediate posting at Kiusam and the establishment of a police outpost with sufficient personnel.
The ENPO has further called for urgent relief and rehabilitation for families displaced by the violence in Kiusam and Pungro areas and Shamator town. It urged the state government to ensure that students from affected families did not suffer academic setbacks because of the conflict, and called for measures to ensure uninterrupted education and necessary support.
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