Kohima, Dec 30 : The Konyak Union, one of the most influential Naga Civil Society Organisations, on Wednesday demanded that the security forces involved in the massacre of the 14 Konyak youths in Mon district of Nagaland on December 4 and 5 must be punished immediately.

The Konyak Union in a strongly worded statement said that the Government of India must immediately sanction order for prosecution of those Indian Army personnel officers involved in the killing of those 14 innocent Konyak youths.

“The Konyak CSO also warns any move to distort the truth shall be considered as an act against the Konyak. Hence the onus lies on the Government of India to prove whether the Konyaks are its citizens or not,” said the statement, signed by Konyak Union President S. Howing Konyak and other leaders.

Konyaks are one of the prominent tribe among the 16 tribes in Nagaland, where over 86 per cent of the two million population is from the tribal community.

The statement, while expressing its dismay over the “snail pace Indian Judiciary system”, the Konyak CSOs warned that all those agencies involved should not take advantage of the so-called existing laws as implied under the Indian judiciary system.

Referring to the visit of the Indian Army inquiry team at Oting village on Wednesday, the statement said that Konyak CSOs doubts on the credibility of the Indian Army inquiry team who had visited ground zero.

“The Konyak CSOs are also not happy with the questions and interrogations made from those witnesses who were present at ground zero on December 4. Its credibility is being questioned upon,” said the statement, also signed by Konyak women wing President Ponglem Konyak and Konyak student wing President Noklem Konyak.

It added that Oting village has been declared as the “Genocide Site” during a meeting of the Konyak CSOs on Monday.

“Moreover, the actual incident site should be manned by the state security forces. Hence, it has declared that no remains of the December 4 incident should be moved out from the original place where it still stands,” the statement said.

Meanwhile, a defence statement said that the Court of Inquiry constituted by the Indian Army to investigate the Mon incident visited the site at Oting village on Wednesday.

“The inquiry team, headed by a senior rank Army officer, a Major General, inspected the site to understand the circumstances in which the incident could have happened,” it said.

The team also took along the witnesses for better understanding of the situation and how events would have unfolded.

Subsequently, the team was also present at Tizit Police Station of Mon District to meet the cross section of the society including the civilians.