In Manipur, Stepping Into the Territory of the ‘Other’ Could be Fatal – The Diplomat

Nineteen months later fierce conflicts broke out between the majority Meitei community and the Kuki-Zo tribe in the northeastern Indian state of Manipur, violence has shown no signs of abating. Indeed, the situation has taken a dangerous turn. So serious is the breakdown of law and order in Manipur and so sharp are the ethnic boundaries that crossing into the territory of the “others” could be fatal.

This is “not just an ethnic conflict,” HS Benjamin Mate, a human rights activist and president of the Kuki Human Rights Organization, told The Diplomat. “The Meites,” he said, have “strong support from the Manipur government against the Kukis.” Mate authored a report titled “Historical Contextualization of State-Sponsored Ethnic Cleansing” and drew attention to the role of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Manipur in fueling violence against the Kuki-Zo.

While the Meitei are Hindus, the Kuki-Zo are Christians. The latter claim that Chief Minister Biren Singh, a Meitei, is systematically trying to wipe them out. His government tried to drive them out of their land in the hills and brand them as “drug dealers.”

The chief minister is believed to enjoy the tacit support of the BJP-led central government. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has steadfastly refused to remove Singh, even as calls for his removal have grown over the months.

Violence erupts in Manipur in May 2023 Kuki-Zoa tribal solidarity march to protest against the Meitei community require to be included in the Scheduled Tribe (ST) list started conflicts. This turned into riots, robberies and murders. There were also incidents of sexual assault in the weeks that followed. AND video clip Meitei men sexually assaulting and parading stripped Kuki women have sparked widespread outrage.

However, nothing seems to have prompted the Modi government to take steps to stop the violence or pull out the state government for its abject failure.

In July last year, the Supreme Court of India suo motu took cognizance of the situation in Manipur, calling the video of the naked women “deeply disturbing”. “That’s the most disgusting thing of all constitutional abuse”, said the then Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud. “If the government doesn’t act, we will,” he warned.

However, in the months since, the Supreme Court has refrained from even commenting on the deteriorating situation in Manipur. Last week, the Supreme Court said that “Central and State Govt must operate in Manipur. Not us.” The court is now focused on remedial measures, including compensation for loss of property, punishment of attackers and rehabilitation of displaced persons from humanitarian camps.

The Meiteis of Manipur form almost 60 percent of the population, while the Kuki-Zo tribes live in the hills. One of the long-standing grievances of the Kukis is that there has been no development in the hills. Indeed, all the hospitals, colleges and other institutions in the state are located in the Imphal valley, where the Meiteis live.

The violence over the past year and the resulting deepening of divisions between the two communities has caused untold hardship for people across ethnic and communal divides, especially for tribals who have been cut off from hospitals and healthcare, institutions of higher learning, airports and even government offices.

Curfews, strikes, internet shutdowns and explosions are a daily occurrence. Last week, a hand grenade was found on the steps of a private bank in the city of Imphal. On Sunday, a grenade was found near the house of a government entrepreneur. Aid camps are no longer safe zones with refugees, incl women and children are snatched away from rival camps. There is little trust between communities. But the erosion of this trust did not happen overnight.

With highways closed between the hilly areas and the valley, the prices of essentials skyrocketed and daily survival became a struggle. These difficulties are mostly not reported by the mainstream media. The Central Security Forces manage “buffer zone” between the Meitei and Kuki territories, maintaining the fragile status quo.

Significantly, 10 Kuki members of the Manipur State Assembly, including those from the BJP, stayed away from participating in the the last two sessions of the state parliament which is located in the Imphal Valley for security reasons.

The Kuki-Zo are listed in the ST list and fear that the inclusion of Meitei in that list will eat into their share of reserved seats in government jobs. Even more worrisome is the impact this could have on their authority over their land in the hills. The Kukis believe that if the Meitei claim for ST status is accepted, it would enable them to purchase tribal land – something they are barred from as non-tribals. They see the Singh government’s attempts to de-notify tribal land as a means of grabbing their land.

Kuki-Zo has lost confidence in Biren Singh and his government, which they consider biased. They have intensified their demands for a separate administration for the Kukis with legislative powers, which will not be under the majority Meitei. Last week, 10 Kuki-Zo MLAs took their demands to Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, where they staged a protest demanding speeding up the dialogue for a separate administration.

“Without a separate administration that is not under the authority of Meitei, there is no way for us to return to our homes,” a Nagaland University professor, who did not want to be named for security reasons, told The Diplomat. Meitei militants are hunting the Kuki tribes. “We had to flee Imphal overnight with our families to save our lives,” he said

The professor was initially working at the Manipur University in Imphal, when his life like hundreds of others turned upside down on the night of May 3 last year. Meitei armed groups entered the university campus around 7 pm and searched for Kuki students and professors. He and his family managed to take shelter overnight in the Assam Rifles camp and fled to neighboring Nagaland the next day.

With the highways blocked and the valley off limits, the professor has been unable to visit his aged parents in Churachandpur for over a year. “Usually it would take four to five hours to reach my home in Churachandpur from Kohima by road. Now I need 2 to 3 days. From Kohima, I have to go to Shillong, then Aizwal to reach Churachandpur,” says the anxious professor.

“No Kuki is safe in the valley,” he adds.

Several Manipuris I spoke to had quit government jobs or dropped out of their academic courses midway. The dire security situation in Manipur forced them to take their families out of the state. It exists deep rooted terror on both sidesmore so with active and threatening armed groups such as the Aramabai Tengol, the Meitei militia and the Kuki militant groups, and the government acting as a silent bystander.

The Kukis feel that they are caught between the devil and the deep sea. They feel “betrayed” by Modi and his government. However, they have no choice but to turn to him to facilitate their demand for separate administration. Besides, parties across the world, including the Congress, which won both Manipur’s parliamentary seats in the recent general elections, were reluctant to do justice to them as it would be seen as “against the interest” of the Meitei majority.

Meanwhile, at the ongoing winter session of the Parliament, the opposition leaders demanded that the situation in Manipur be discussed to the end. The government refused.

It is strange that presidential rule was not imposed in such a situation uncertain situationn. There is still no accountability despite BJP governments ruling at the center and the state.

Unwilling to admit failure to control the situation, Modi continues to resist visiting the state. In contrast, he visits countries ruled by the opposition with much less provocation. Meanwhile, unable to deal with the worsening security situation, the government did re-imposed the Armed Forces Special Powers Act in several districts. Instead of moving forward, the clock is turning back in the state of Manipur.