Imphal:
The Assam Rifles today said it is checking the authenticity of a photograph that purportedly showed a group of men in the force’s uniform holding flags that social media users claimed belonged to an insurgent group in the northeast.
It said disciplinary action will be taken if the photo is confirmed to be authentic.
The Assam Rifles’ official X handle also shared the photo with two red crosses on it, and with the text “being verified”.
“The authenticity of the photograph is being verified. Based on confirmation, suitable disciplinary action will be initiated against all the defaulters,” the Assam Rifles said.
“Assam Rifles remains committed to maintaining ethos of the force,” it said.
The Ministry of Home Affairs, the Indian Army’s Eastern Command, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and Manipur Governor AK Bhalla are among those who were tagged in the post by the Assam Rifles.
The authenticity of the photograph is being verified. Based on confirmation suitable disciplinary action will be initiated against all the defaulters.
Assam Rifles remains committed to maintaining ethos of the force.@HMOIndia @AmitShah @PIBHomeAffairs @Spearcorps @easterncomd… pic.twitter.com/k6NLpLIC3O
— The Assam Rifles (@official_dgar) May 19, 2025
Social media users alleged the flag in the purported photo belongs to the Zomi Revolutionary Army (ZRA), which is active in Manipur. AI-generated images and large disinformation content on Manipur have also been a huge problem, even leading to incidents on the ground.
The ZRA comes under the umbrella body of eight insurgent groups represented by the United Peoples Front (UPF) for negotiations with the Centre.
The UPF, and another umbrella body of 17 insurgent groups represented by the Kuki National Organisation (KNO), have signed the suspension of operations (SoO) agreement with the Centre and the state government.
Broadly, the SoO agreement says the insurgents are to stay at designated camps and their weapons kept in locked storage, to be monitored regularly.
However, they face allegations of violating the ground rules of the SoO agreement by participating in the Manipur ethnic violence between the Meitei community and the Kuki tribes.
The United National Liberation Front (Pambei), or UNLF (P), which is the only Meitei insurgent group that signed a ceasefire, also faces allegations of taking part in the ethnic clashes in violation of the ceasefire.
The Indian Army has operational control of the Assam Rifles, while the Ministry of Home Affairs has administrative control. The Assam Rifles guards the border with Myanmar and also conducts counter-insurgency operations, along with the Manipur Police.