End to conflict in Manipur elusive as Kukis, Meiteis remain firm on demands

Guwahati: Efforts to resolve the conflict in Manipur, ongoing since May last year, have reached an impasse. The Kuki groups remain steadfast in their demand for a "separate administration," while the majority Meiteis vehemently oppose such a proposition.

While the Kukis have made clear their stance that the creation of a "separate administration" comprising the Kuki-Zomi-Hmar-dominated areas is the only way forward to establish peace, organisations representing the Meiteis have stepped up the demand for delisting the Kuki-Zo people as Scheduled Tribes (ST), thereby taking away their reservation benefits. The Meiteis allege that insurgents based out in neighbouring Myanmar are helping the Kukis in their demand for separation from Manipur.

Sources within the Manipur government informed DH on Thursday that progress towards a resolution has been stagnant, with both communities remaining steadfast in their respective demands. Efforts to relocate displaced individuals from both communities have also reached a standstill due to concerns about potential further escalation of the situation.

Nearly 200 people have been killed and 60,000 others have been displaced due to the violence since May. Sporadic firing and abduction have kept the state on the boil despite the presence of nearly 50,000 central security forces.

With a resolution to the conflict proving elusive, attempts by Manipur police to "take control" of Moreh, a Kuki-dominated town along the Myanmar border, have resulted in violence. Since October, at least three Manipur police personnel have lost their lives, and a minimum of 13 others, including BSF personnel, have sustained injuries in clashes with "armed militants." The recent outbreak of violence occurred on Tuesday following the arrest of two local Kuki leaders for their alleged involvement in the killing of a sub-divisional police officer, Chingtham Anand Kumar, a Meitei, in Moreh in October. Subsequently, on Wednesday, two police commandos, both Meitei, were fatally shot, and six others were injured in an attack on a police camp by militants.

Kuki organisations are demanding the withdrawal of Manipur police from Moreh and advocating for the sole responsibility of maintaining law and order to be entrusted to central forces. "For peace to prevail, it is paramount for the Manipur government to withdraw its state forces from Moreh, as their presence is a source of violence and fear among the inhabitants. The Kuki-Zo people, with nowhere to run, find themselves fighting for their land," Zo United, an organisation based in Kuki-dominated Churachandpur district, said.

The escalating violence has deepened the ethnic divide, prompting central security forces to establish a "buffer zone" between the Kuki hills and the Meitei-dominated Imphal Valley to curb further unrest. Despite these efforts, sporadic violence has persisted along the designated "buffer zone." Four Meitei men, who had gone to Kuki-dominated areas, were abducted on January 10. Their bodies were later found.

The Coordination Committee on Manipur Unity, an influential Meitei organisation, has demanded action against "Kuki insurgent groups" and sought the cancellation of the 'Suspension of Operation Agreement' with the Kuki insurgent groups.

Chief Minister N. Biren Singh, a Meitei, who has faced criticism from Kuki groups, recently asserted that the dynamics of the conflict have shifted in the past few months, evolving from a Meitei-Kuki clash to a confrontation between security forces and militants. He also alleged the participation of "foreign mercenaries" in the recent violence, particularly in Moreh.