Family members and locals held a protest in a resistance-held area of Tamu Township to demand justice and clarity over the killing of 10 members of the Tamu People's Defence Force (PDF) by the Indian military.
Soldiers from India’s Assam Rifles a paramilitary force responsible for border security killed the 10 Tamu PDF members on 14 May 2025, in disputed circumstances.
According to Tamu PDF officers the the murdered PDF members were aged between 18 and 34 years old and temporarily stationed near Kammagyi Village in Tamu Township. They were abducted by members of the Assam Rifles on Myanmar territory in Tamu Township and taken over to the Indian side of the border where they shot and killed them. The bodies also showed signs of stab wounds and torture.
Conversely, a 14 May social media post by the Indian Army's eastern regional command claimed that the PDF members had entered India’s Chandel District in Manipur State before being shot. It said that acting on intelligence about militant activities near New Samtal Village in Chandel District, the Assam Rifles launched an operation that resulted in a shootout where 10 armed militants were neutralised and weapons and ammunition were seized.
On 26 May family members of the murdered PDF members held a protest in a resistance-held area of Tamu Township where they displayed photographs of the ten victims and demanded justice.
A source close to the family of a slain PDF member said: “What we really want is for the truth to be revealed. At the moment, there’s not much we can do about the killing of the 10 people — it feels like all we can do is wait and watch. We’ve seen the statement from the National Unity Government (NUG) about this, but we’re asking the local elders and officials to put more effort into addressing this case. If this incident is ignored, these murders will fade from memory, and there’s no guarantee that similar tragedies won’t happen again.”
Other PDF members brought the bodies back to Myanmar on 16 May after the Indian authorities gave them permission to bring them back.
A witness who saw the bodies of the PDF members said: “Just by looking at their uniform badges, it was clear they were [Myanmar] resistance fighters. Killing them knowing exactly who they were was cruel and totally unacceptable. Their bodies showed signs of severe beatings and torture. Some of their faces were so badly disfigured that it was difficult to identify them. They had been beaten really badly.”
On 20 May, the NUG's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement urging the Indian government to investigate and take action regarding the killing of the 10 Tamu PDF members. However, as of 27 May, there has been no response from the Indian government.
