Meiteis and Kukis call on the center to control the situation as ethnic clashes continue in Manipur

In spite of their pronounced differences, members of the Meitei and Kuki groups urged peace in the state on Wednesday as the ethnic conflict in Manipur continues.

Amit Shah, the home minister, is now observing the situation in Manipur. Shah, who arrived in Imphal on Monday night, will meet with Kuki civil society organizations on Thursday at the border town of Moreh in the Tengnoupal district of India.

What say the demonstrators?

Members of the Kuki-Hmar-Zomi-Mizo tribes protested in Delhi’s Jantar Mantar in the midst of ongoing ethnic strife, calling for the removal of Chief Minister Biren Singh and the implementation of President’s rule in the state.

Representatives of the Meitei community attended a news conference where they urged the Center to become involved in pacifying the state.

More than 115 tribal settlements, 4,000 homes, and 222 churches, according to Kuki community members, have been burned and desecrated. They said that Kuki homes had been set on fire even while Home Minister Amit Shah visited the region on May 29 and 30.

A leader of the Delhi-based Kuki Students Organization, Timothy Chongthu, suggested that the government take into consideration the indigenous groups’ long-standing desire for a separate governance.

If the state administration is unable to maintain control, “President’s rule should be put into effect in Manipur,” he said.

However, a Meitei spokesman said that the violence in the Meitei-dominated Imphal valley was only a “reaction”.

People in Manipur, according to Bobby Meetei of the People’s Alliance for Peace and Progress Manipur, “are frustrated and powerless.”

He said that “the Kukis want to drive the Meiteis into the Imphal valley so they can demand a separate state.”

A member of the Meitei community from the worst-affected Churachandpur area, Kimi Soni, expressed her sorrow.

She said, “We were told we had to manage on our own for two nights and the police did nothing for us.”

Both populations responded angrily to General Anil Chauhan’s assertion that the unrest was caused by “ethnic clashes” rather than an anti-insurgency problem.

The Meitei community thought the Army was being biased, despite the Kuki representatives saying it supported their assertion that they are not “illegal immigrants” as has been suggested.

Kimi questioned, “The CDS said it’s ethnic clashes and not insurgency, so why isn’t the firing stopping?”

She made it clear, however, that she wasn’t saying that the Army was siding with anybody.

She said, “We are not suggesting they are side with anybody, but we are unsure of what is going on.

Representatives of Meitei have said that a number of Kukis are “illegal immigrants” from Myanmar and that recent state government action against poppy plants in the forest region is what caused the conflicts.

Additionally, they requested that the National Register of Citizens (NRC) be put into effect in the state to filter out “illegal immigrants” and that the Suspension of Operations (SoO) deal that had been reached with several Kuki militant organizations be revoked immediately.

An Aadhaar card is relatively simple to get, hence Manipur should conduct an NRC exercise to make things clear, according to Ina Khunbi of the Meitei community.

After a “Tribal Solidarity March” opposing the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) designation in all 10 of Manipur’s districts on May 3, violence broke out.

Tension over the displacement of Kuki people from reserve forest area had caused a number of local agitations before to the violence.

The majority of Meiteis, who make up around 53% of Manipur’s population, reside in the Imphal Valley. Another 40% of the population is made up of the Naga and Kuki tribes, who live in the hill areas.

According to authorities, the violence has resulted in the deaths of over 80 individuals thus far.