NIA arrests UKNA cadre S Palal Thadou in the Tronglaobi IED attack case after two children were killed and their mother injured in the April 7 Manipur blast.
Imphal, August 12: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested S. Palal Thadou in connection with the April 7 improvised explosive device (IED) attack at Tronglaobi Awang Leikai in Bishnupur district, in which two young children were killed and their mother was critically injured.
The arrest, announced by the NIA on Wednesday, is the first arrest in RC-04/2026/NIA/IMP, the agency's case relating to the attack. The accused has been produced before the Special NIA Court in Imphal and remanded to 10 days' police custody.
The NIA said the arrest forms part of its investigation into the wider conspiracy behind the attack and efforts to identify other people allegedly involved.
According to the NIA case record, the attack took place on April 7, 2026, when an explosive was launched from the Gelmol hillside towards Tronglaobi Awang Leikai and exploded after striking the residential wall of a house belonging to Oinam Mangalngamba Singh.
The attack killed two children from the family and seriously injured their mother.
First arrest in NIA case
The NIA said its investigation established the alleged involvement of S. Palal Thadou in the offence.
Palal had already been arrested by Churachandpur Police in connection with FIR No. 17(02)2026 and later by Bishnupur Police in connection with FIR No. 12(03)2026 of PGCI Police Station.
The NIA has now arrested him specifically in the Tronglaobi case as investigators seek to establish the chain of events leading to the attack and identify others allegedly connected with it.
The agency took over the investigation from Moirang Police Station and registered the case as RC-04/2026/NIA/IMP on April 23, invoking provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Explosive Substances Act and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
The NIA's publicly available case record describes RC-04/2026/NIA/IMP as the case concerning the launching of an explosive or bomb from the Gelmol hillside towards Tronglaobi Awang Leikai.
July 23 apprehension provided breakthrough
The arrest follows the apprehension of Palal by security forces on July 23 in Churachandpur district.
According to the police account, Manipur Police, Assam Rifles, the Indian Army and the CRPF launched a counter-insurgency operation after receiving information about the presence of senior United Kuki National Army (UKNA) cadres in the area.
Palal was subsequently identified as S. Palal Thadou alias Lalboi Singson. Reports said security forces described him as a high-ranking UKNA cadre and the organisation's alleged self-styled Finance Secretary. Extortion notes and a mobile phone were reportedly recovered from him.
The police investigation that followed reportedly linked him to a number of cases involving alleged firing, explosives and other subversive activities.
Among the cases listed by police are:
- The December 16, 2025 Torbung bomb blast, registered as FIR No. 167(12)2025 at Churachandpur Police Station.
- Firing in the Molnom area during the intervening night of February 3 and 4, 2026, registered as FIR No. 17(02)2026.
- A March 25, 2026 recce and firing incident involving CRPF personnel.
- Firing near a CRPF camp in Bishnupur district on March 26, registered as FIR No. 12(03)2026 at PGCI Police Station.
- Firing in the Kaprang area on July 4, shortly before the Manipur Chief Minister's visit to Churachandpur, registered as FIR No. 66(07)2026.
The most significant link established during the investigation, according to police, was his alleged involvement in the Tronglaobi attack.
What happened at Tronglaobi on April 7
The attack occurred at around 1 am on April 7, when the family was asleep at its residence in Tronglaobi Awang Leikai.
Contemporary reports said a rocket-like projectile or bomb struck the house, seriously injuring the children's mother, Oinam Binita, and causing fatal injuries to her two children.
The victims were identified as five-year-old Oinam Tomthin and his five-month-old sister, Oinam Yaisana. Both died after the attack. Binita sustained critical injuries.
The location of the attack added to its significance. Tronglaobi lies close to the sensitive hill-valley boundary adjoining Churachandpur district and has remained vulnerable to armed attacks during the continuing conflict in Manipur.
An unexploded projectile, described in reports as an RPG, was subsequently recovered near the area and safely neutralised.
The attack triggered widespread anger and protests in Bishnupur and other parts of the Imphal Valley. Residents blocked roads and vehicles were set on fire. Tensions also escalated around a CRPF camp near Tronglaobi, where protesters attempted to enter the camp and security forces responded with firing.
The state government temporarily suspended internet and mobile data services in five valley districts — Imphal West, Imphal East, Thoubal, Kakching and Bishnupur — citing the need to prevent the spread of rumours and disinformation amid the deteriorating law-and-order situation.
Investigation moved to NIA
The incident quickly became a major security investigation. The Manipur government announced that the case would be handed over to the NIA as investigators sought to determine who planned and executed the attack.
The NIA subsequently registered RC-04/2026/NIA/IMP. Its case listing separately records another April 7 case, RC-06/2026/NIA/IMP, relating to the violent mob attack on the D/08 Battalion CRPF camp at Gelmol following the Tronglaobi incident.
The distinction is significant because the NIA is investigating the residential attack and the subsequent attack on the security camp as separate cases.
The latest arrest concerns the Tronglaobi residential attack case.
Probe into larger conspiracy
The NIA has not said that the arrest concludes the investigation. Instead, the agency said further investigation is continuing to identify and apprehend other people allegedly involved in the conspiracy and to establish the wider network behind the attack.
The arrest also comes nearly four months after the attack, during which the identity and role of those responsible remained under investigation.
For the families and residents affected by the April 7 violence, the arrest marks the first major development in the criminal investigation into the attack on the civilian home.
The NIA's probe will now focus on establishing Palal's alleged role, identifying other suspected participants and determining how the attack was planned, coordinated and executed.
The agency has said further action will be taken in accordance with law as the investigation progresses.
The April 7 attack occurred against the backdrop of continuing violence along Manipur's hill-valley fault line since May 2023. Tronglaobi and surrounding areas have remained particularly sensitive because of their proximity to the Churachandpur hills.
The deaths of the two children triggered an immediate security and law-and-order crisis in Bishnupur. The incident was followed by protests, attacks on security infrastructure and clashes that further strained an already fragile situation.
Reports from the time said the children's mother, Oinam Binita, was undergoing treatment after sustaining serious injuries in the blast. The attack also prompted renewed questions about civilian protection in villages located close to the buffer-zone areas.
The NIA's case record now places the alleged launching point of the explosive at the Gelmol hillside, providing a more specific description of the suspected trajectory than some of the initial reports available immediately after the attack.
The July apprehension of Palal subsequently gave investigators a potential lead into the attack. Security agencies said their interrogation and follow-up investigation, including information obtained through digital forensics and other intelligence inputs, helped establish his alleged links to multiple cases.
With his formal arrest by the NIA, the investigation has entered a new phase focused on the alleged conspiracy behind the Tronglaobi attack.
The presumption of innocence applies to the accused unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
