Imphal, Sept. 22 -- A 15-year-old boy was shot dead by unknown armed miscreants in Tamenglong district of Manipur on Monday, police said on Monday. According to officers familiar with the matter, the incident took place when the boy, a resident of Takou village, that has a substantial Naga population, had gone alone to Tamei village to procure food items. Villagers reportedly heard around 20 rounds of gunfire from the area at around 10.30 am. Later, when the villagers went towards the spot, the boy was found dead on the roadside. Police said the motive behind the attack remained uncertain and those responsible for the incident were yet to be identified. No group has made an immediate claim of responsibility for the incident. Tension between the Naga and Kuki communities erupted on February 7 this year after a drunken brawl in the Litan area of Manipur's Ukhrul district. Since then, more than 35 individuals from both communities have been killed in several incidents. The incident occurred on the sidelines of a statewide bandh called by The National Revolutionary Front Manipur (NRFM) in protest against the 1949 merger of Manipur with the Indian union, terming it illegal. The shutdown has been imposed from midnight of September 20 to September 21. "Only a few employees attended the office though no protestors were seen on streets," a government employee requesting anonymity told HT. The NRFM's statement described the merger as an alleged unlawful annexation of Manipur's sovereignty and questioned the circumstances under which the agreement was signed. According to the outfit, the agreement was signed under pressure and without the consent of the then-elected Manipur legislative assembly....