The Mindat chapter of the Chinland Defense Force (CDF) has denied any involvement in the recent murders of three Indian nationals in Chin State and has pledged to cooperate with efforts to identify the culprits.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the CDF Mindat said that a suspect who has been named in connection with the case—a man identified as Salai Aung Lein—has never been affiliated with the group.
“CDF Mindat has no connection to the murders, and we are ready to assist organisations responsible for investigating to the best of our ability,” the statement said.
It added that Salai Aung Lein was known to CDF Mindat only as someone involved in procuring supplies from Mizoram for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Magway Region’s Myaing Township, which borders Chin State.
Initial reports by Indian media claimed that two of the victims, a 48-year-old woman named C Biaksuii and a 37-year-old man named Bablu Talukdar—both residents of Mizoram’s Siaha District—may have been involved in the sale of weapons to the CDF.
They and their driver, a 44-year-old man named B Lathafamkima, were found dead in Chin State on March 22, the reports said.
While no details were provided as to where in Chin State the bodies were discovered, the reports said that they had been burned.
According to Mizoram police, the victims entered Myanmar on March 19.
Police also claimed that C Biaksuii, who was an ethnic Chin woman originally from Myanmar, had travelled to Chin State the previous month with another woman to meet with two people who were suspected ex-members of the CDF to receive payment for AK-47 rifles.
None of these claims could be independently confirmed.
In response to allegations of its involvement in the triple homicide, CDF Mindat said that it had information that Salai Aung Lein and another man identified simply as Jack had entrusted money to a Mizoram resident on behalf of IDPs in Myaing Township in order to buy necessary supplies.
The murder occurred when the two men tried to get the money back, according to the CDF.
Myanmar Now was unable to verify the CDF’s claims.
There have also been reports that the murders have made it more difficult for Myanmar nationals to cross the border at official border gates.
“We need free access to those gates to get supplies such as rice and oil, so the blockage of roads and crossings could pose a problem for us,” said a Chin IDP living in Mizoram.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, more than 51,000 people from northwestern Myanmar have been forced to flee to India, with most taking refuge in Mizoram and Manipur, the two Indian states that border Chin State.
According to the Thantlang Resettlement Committee, an organisation aiding displaced persons in Myanmar’s northwest, up to 25,000 refugees from Myanmar are currently staying in Mizoram.
Tensions escalated between India and Myanmar in July of last year when two men were killed outside Tamu, Sagaing Region, near the Manipur border, nearly bringing border trade to a halt.
On Wednesday, the Foreign Ministry of the publicly mandated National Unity Government released a statement condemning the killings and urging Myanmar citizens seeking refuge in India to cooperate with efforts to strengthen regional security and the rule of law.
“The ministry would like to express its strong support for the efforts of the law enforcement authorities and the local government in their attempts to bring the perpetrators to justice in a fair and just manner,” it said.
