Imphal/New Delhi:

A global umbrella body of civil society organisations of Manipur’s Meitei community has appealed to the central government to take decisive action against who it alleged were “Chin-Kuki insurgents”, a day after a paramilitary soldier was killed in action in Jiribam district. The Manipur Police and Chief Minister N Biren Singh in separate statements on X had said the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) soldier was killed in firing by “suspected Kuki insurgents” on Sunday.

The Meitei Alliance in a statement today condemning the killing of the CRPF soldier said “there had been multiple such attacks on the security forces by Chin-Kuki cross-border terrorists” amid the ethnic tension in Manipur.

The Manipur Police said in the statement had said 43-year-old CRPF soldier Ajoy Kumar Jha was part of a joint patrol in Jiribam when they came under fire. He was a resident of Madhubani in Bihar, and was scheduled to go home on leave this week. Two policemen and a paramilitary soldier were injured in Sunday’s attack.

In January, on a question about violence in the border trading town Moreh, Manipur Security Adviser Kuldiep Singh had told reporters at Imphal airport, “As far as Myanmar-based militants are concerned, we do not have any such confirmation.” Later, at another press conference in Imphal, he had said, “Intelligence is there, but intelligence cannot be evidence. There is a possibility they [Myanmar insurgents] might have come. But there is no evidence.”

In the statement today, the Meitei Alliance said Ajoy Kumar Jha’s “supreme sacrifice while serving the nation will be remembered with utmost respect. The Meitei Alliance extends its deepest condolences to the bereaved family of Ajoy Kumar Jha, and prays for the speedy recovery of the injured personnel.”

The Meitei Alliance alleged a similar ambush happened on June 10 on an advance convoy of security forces going towards Jiribam district, 240 km from the state capital Imphal, to prepare for Chief Minister N Biren Singh’s planned visit. Mr Singh eventually cancelled the visit.

“… Ajoy Kumar Jha was the 12th security personnel killed by these cross-border terrorist groups [since May 2023]. The lack of satisfying actions by the central government to suppress such cross-border terrorism despite security personnel being killed… and over 60,000 languishing in relief camps for the last 14 months, is really upsetting to say the least,” the Meitei Alliance said in the statement.

“The lack of actions further emboldens these terrorist groups to commit such heinous crimes without fear of the law,” it said, adding the central government should restore the rule of law in Manipur.

The ethnic violence between the valley-dominant Meitei community and nearly two dozen tribes known as Kukis – a term given by the British in colonial times – who are dominant in some hill areas of Manipur, has killed over 220 people and internally displaced nearly 50,000.

The general category Meiteis want to be included under the Scheduled Tribes category, while the nearly two dozen tribes that share ethnic ties with people in neighbouring Myanmar’s Chin State and Mizoram want a separate administrative carved out of Manipur, citing discrimination and unequal share of resources and power with the Meiteis.

Imphal/New Delhi:

A Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) soldier who was killed in action in an attack by “suspected Kuki insurgents” on Sunday was scheduled to go home in Bihar on Monday, a policeman who shared a barrack with the CRPF soldier has said.

The policeman, in a video taken inside the barrack, said the 43-year-old CRPF soldier Ajoy Kumar Jha slept on a bed next to his. He was a resident of Madhubani in Bihar.

“This is his bed, just next to mine. He was the CRPF soldier who was killed in action,” the policeman said, pointing the camera on a hard bed on which a red luggage was kept. “He had packed his clothes. He was happy he would be going home tomorrow,” the policeman said.

“He had taken a pass to go home. See his bag and belongings, all neatly packed. It is very sad. I can’t believe he is no more. He was behind me when he was hit by the bullet,” the policeman said, referring to a “pass”, or approved paperwork for leave.

The Manipur Police in a statement said a joint patrol of the police and the CRPF in Jiribam district “was fired upon heavily with sophisticated weapons by suspected armed Kuki militants from multiple locations.”

The CRPF soldier was killed in the firing, while two Manipur Police personnel were injured. The two are being treated at a Jiribam hospital and are out of danger, the police said.

The police said reinforcements have arrived and are taking part in the combing operations. “The police department is monitoring the situation constantly and senior officers are in the district to supervise the security arrangement and also the ongoing combing operations,” the police said.

The CRPF in a post in Hindi on X said the paramilitary force “salutes our brave soldier’s indomitable courage, valour and devotion to the motherland… We stand with the family of our brave man.”

दिनांक 14 जुलाई 2024 को मणिपुर के जिरिबाम में 20 बटालियन #CRPF एवं राज्य पुलिस की संयुक्त पार्टी पर उग्रवादियों द्वारा घात लगाकर किए गए हमले में बहादुर कॉन्स्टेबल ड्राईवर अजय कुमार झा ने कर्तव्य की बलिवेदी पर अपने प्राणों की आहुति दी। #सीआरपीएफ अपने शूरवीर के अदम्य साहस, शौर्य… pic.twitter.com/mZMxO8jPNL

— CRPF (@crpfindia) July 14, 2024

Before today’s ambush by the suspected Kuki insurgents, tension in Jiribam had been high in recent weeks following fighting between the Meitei community and the Hmar tribes.

The district didn’t see violence for over a year since Meitei-Kuki ethnic clashes began in May 2023; however, clashes erupted in Jiribam last month, forcing over a thousand people from both the communities to live in relief camps, some in neighbouring Assam.

The ethnic violence between the valley-dominant Meitei community and nearly two dozen tribes known as Kukis – a term given by the British in colonial times – who are dominant in some hill areas of Manipur, has killed over 220 people and internally displaced nearly 50,000.

The general category Meiteis want to be included under the Scheduled Tribes category, while the nearly two dozen tribes that share ethnic ties with people in neighbouring Myanmar’s Chin State and Mizoram want a separate administrative carved out of Manipur, citing discrimination and unequal share of resources and power with the Meiteis.

Imphal:
A Central Reserve Police Force soldier was killed in attacks by “suspected Kuki insurgents” on a joint patrol from multiple directions in Manipur’s Jiribam district today, the police said in a statement. The forces then launched a combing operation.

Here’s your 5-point cheat sheet to this big story

Imphal/New Delhi:

A soldier of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) was killed in action after a joint patrol with the state police was ambushed by suspected insurgents in Manipur’s Jiribam district. Two police commandos were injured.

The police said the joint patrol came under heavy fire from the suspected insurgents in the district bordering Assam. The CRPF soldier was walking near a patrol SUV when the suspected insurgents opened fire.

Visuals of the ambush site shows the SUV with several bullet holes and a shattered rear windshield. Two police commandos who were inside the vehicle were hit.

“We returned effective fire. The insurgents took cover of the forest and ran away. A combing operation is going on,” a senior police officer told NDTV on phone from Jiribam, 220 km from the state capital Imphal.

Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh in a post on X condemned the attack by who he called “suspected Kuki militants”.

Before today’s ambush, tension in Jiribam had been high in recent weeks following clashes between the Meitei community and the Hmar tribes.

The district didn’t see violence for over a year since Meitei-Kuki ethnic clashes began in May 2023; however, clashes erupted in Jiribam last month, forcing over a thousand people from both the communities to live in relief camps, some in neighbouring Assam.

Manipur’s second lifeline National Highway 37 which connects Imphal with Assam’s Cachar passes through Jiribam. The other lifeline that connects Manipur with the rest of the country is National Highway 2, which remains blocked in Kuki-dominated Kangpokpi district. This highway goes to Assam via Nagaland. The Kuki tribes also allege the Meitei community has blocked all essential items and cargo trucks from going to the hill areas where they live.

The ethnic violence between the valley-dominant Meitei community and nearly two dozen tribes known as Kukis – a term given by the British in colonial times – who are dominant in some hill areas of Manipur, has killed over 220 people and internally displaced nearly 50,000.

Armed people on both sides call themselves “village defence volunteers”, a definition of the belligerents that has become the most controversial since nothing stops these “volunteers” from killing people under the insurance provided by “in self-defence”.

The general category Meiteis want to be included under the Scheduled Tribes category, while the nearly two dozen tribes that share ethnic ties with people in neighbouring Myanmar’s Chin State and Mizoram want a separate administrative carved out of Manipur, citing discrimination and unequal share of resources and power with the Meiteis.

Imphal/New Delhi:

A Minister and MLA of the Naga People’s Front in Manipur tore into what he called Congress MP Rahul Gandhi’s “deceit” in visiting Manipur to play politics amid the ethnic tensions.

Water Resources Minister Awangbow Newmai pointed to the conflict between the Naga and the Kuki tribes that began in 1993 and lasted seven years, and questioned the Congress what steps it took then to bring peace.

The Naga People’s Front (NPF) MLA from Tamei constituency, while addressing people at an event to mark the distribution of government scheme benefits in the state capital Imphal, said it is unfortunate that some leaders have been politicising the Manipur issue without looking at the root cause of the ethnic tensions.

“We have to live together because as much as you want peace, I also want peace. Instead of politicising it, let us find the root cause together, diagnose the rare disease and try to treat it,” Mr Newmai said. The NPF is an ally of the ruling BJP in Manipur. “Those who blame others saying ‘you don’t know anything’ are really not for peace.”

Mr Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, earlier this week went to Manipur’s Jiribam, Churachandpur, Moirang and Imphal and met people in relief camps. He told reporters he does not want to politicise the issue, though in his meeting with Governor Anusuiya Uikey he expressed disappointment the Congress “was not happy with the progress that had taken place”.

It was the Congress MP’s third visit to Manipur since ethnic violence began in May 2023 between the valley-dominant Meitei community and nearly two dozen tribes known as Kukis – a term given by the British in colonial times – who are dominant in some hill areas of Manipur.

The general category Meiteis want to be included under the Scheduled Tribes category, while the nearly two dozen tribes that share ethnic ties with people in neighbouring Myanmar’s Chin State and Mizoram want a separate administrative carved out of Manipur.

“One after another Congress leaders have been coming to Manipur and talking about peace. Holding the hand of an aggrieved person in a relief camp, taking a photo and flashing it in the media will not bring peace – unless we work together to find where it has really gone wrong,” Mr Newmai, the Naga MLA, said.

“I don’t know if I missed hearing it, but all these Congress leaders who have come to Manipur have not said one word on the core issue – how it happened, why it happened, how it can be treated? They only blame the leaders; they only blame the Prime Minister. They don’t bring any suggestions. If they dare to bring suggestions, tell us what they did in the past.

“What have they done in 1993? Did the Prime Minister visit that time? Have they expressed regret? If they want to talk about peace, tell us what they have done in the past? Say in parliament, for the record, what you have done that you accuse us of falling short?” Mr Newmai said, referring to the Kuki-Naga ethnic conflict that began in 1993 and which claimed hundreds of lives.

Alluding to Mr Gandhi’s visit to relief camps, the Naga MLA said Mr Gandhi did not say a single word about the “core problems” and instead chose to indulge in photoshoots.

“Just playing politics, clicking photos with a mother in a relief camp and saying ‘I see this, but you’re not seeing it’, that is such a big lie. We are here; we are doing all we can from Day 1, day and night. Compared to the 1993 (ethnic violence), this conflict has gone down drastically after a few months. I didn’t expect that because I fear whenever an ethnic clash happens, it doesn’t end soon. We saw this in 1993.

“What started in 1993 lasted for seven years. We couldn’t get out. We were scared. Kukis were also scared. At that time, was there any effort to give safe passage to us? Forget about prefabricated houses, forget about relief. Did they even utter one word in parliament to give solidarity to the people, recognise their pain?

“When they have not done anything then, why are they shouting in parliament today? Those are the same leaders, the inheritance, the legacy of the Congress. I for one can’t forget or forgive. A law made in 1958, what they call AFSPA, the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act – perhaps there are no such laws in the world now… If they really want to preach peace, if they really want to talk about humanity, in the upcoming parliament session, we dare the Congress to say ‘We regret bringing in that law’… Is there any other such law in the world? Who brought this law?” Mr Newmai said.

“Yet, they come here and pretend to show they love the people. Are they not the same leaders from the same party, as if we are deaf and blind?” he added.

The controversial law AFSPA gives sweeping powers to security forces to operate freely anywhere that has been declared a “disturbed area”; no military personnel in an area where AFSPA is in force can be prosecuted without the Centre’s sanction. Manipur’s hill areas are under the AFSPA due to insurgent activity, while the law was removed from the valley areas after the situation improved in the last eight years since the BJP came to power.

Several petitions had been filed in the Supreme Court seeking a direction to investigate over 1,500 extrajudicial killings in Manipur from the year 2000 to 2012.

“If they really want peace, give us constructive suggestions, let’s work together to bring peace and understanding. The main, core issue of what happened in Manipur continuously from time to time is illegal immigration. This is a problem known the world over. Only the Congress doesn’t know about it. They have never mentioned it. Rahul Gandhi visited two-three times. He never mentioned illegal immigrants and the way to stop them. He never said anything about it. Manipur has been a hotspot of drug trafficking and poppy plantation. That has become the core issue. Did he say anything about this? No,” Mr Newmai said.

The Manipur government has been carrying out its ‘war on drugs’ campaign, razing over 20,000 acres of poppy cultivation in the hills in recent years. The Centre has also decided to fence the porous border with Myanmar, starting with the Manipur section. The scrapping of the free-movement regime (FMR) that allows citizens from either nation to enter each other’s territory up to a certain distance without papers is another contentious issue.

“So, either they are ignorant about the Manipur situation, or they are the people who are engineering all these issues… In parliament, if they really want peace, they should express regret for what they have not done in the past,” he added.

During his visit, Mr Gandhi had told reporters in Imphal that there has not been much improvement in the situation in the state. “It’s the third time I have come here since the problem started and it has been a tremendous tragedy. I expected some improvement in the situation but was disappointed to see no marked improvement,” he had said.

The ethnic violence has killed over 220 people and left nearly 50,000 internally displaced.

The Kuki tribes want a separate administration or “Kukiland” carved out of Manipur, a demand towards which the Kukis have been working to achieve for decades, citing the need for a homeland for the scattered tribes who share ethnic ties with tribes in neighbouring Mizoram and Myanmar’s Chin State.

Kuki groups such as the Churachandpur-based Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) and the Kangpokpi-based Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU), and their 10 MLAs have joined the call for a separate administration – a demand also made by 25-odd Kuki-Zo insurgent groups that have signed the suspension of operations (SoO) agreement. This single demand has brought the Kuki insurgent groups, the 10 Kuki-Zo MLAs, and the civil society groups on the same page.

Meitei organisations say the Kukis’ claim for a separate administration as a result of the violence that began in May 2023 is a big lie since the SoO groups have been working with Kuki politicians and civil society groups to break up the state for many years before May 2023.

Imphal/New Delhi:

Three members of an insurgent group were arrested after a gunfight in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district today, the police said in a statement. Three military-grade assault rifles and over 1,300 bullets were seized from them, the police said, adding they launched the operation based on information given by the anti-terror body National Investigation Agency (NIA).

Police sources told NDTV the security forces came under heavy fire, due to which they had to retaliate with “maximum restraint”.

The NIA has been looking into a transnational conspiracy by insurgents and terrorist groups to exploit the Manipur situation and spread terror in the state bordering Myanmar, where the junta is fighting pro-democracy insurgents.

Following the operation by a joint team of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and the state police, members of the Kuki tribes came out in huge numbers in protest against the Superintendent of Police (SP).

The protesters demanded the security forces to release the three men, claiming they were “village defence volunteers”.

The police in the statement warned against spreading disinformation about the joint operation on social media.

Village Volunteers With Assault Rifles? What Cops Say

Police sources told NDTV the two AK series and a Myanmar-origin assault rifles seized from the three men indicate the suspects are not those who are commonly known as “village defence volunteers”, as the “volunteers” mostly carry licenced single-barrel guns, primarily for hunting. “The operation was based on NIA’s inputs. We are looking at many connected cases,” a senior officer said on phone from Kangpokpi, requesting anonymity. 

“Various unfounded allegations and inciting messages regarding the conduct of the operation are doing rounds in social media. It is hereby appealed to stop propagation of such fake messages. Postings of such baseless allegations upon the security forces and inciting the public wrongly in social media will face legal action,” the police said in a post on X.

On 09.07.2024, joint security forces (SF) of Manipur Police and CRPF launched an operation in L. Hengjol village, New Keithelmanbi PS, Kangpokpi District at around 0330 hrs on the basis of an intelligence shared by NIA. There was an exchange of firing between the SF and armed… pic.twitter.com/4NGNEUJXjW

— Manipur Police (@manipur_police) July 9, 2024

The operation to arrest the three armed insurgents began at 3.30 am on Tuesday. The three arrested men have been handed over to the NIA, the police said.

“Security forces exercised maximum restraint in the conduct of the operation and acted in self-defence when they were fired upon by the armed militants and obstructed by civilians,” the police said.

Kuki groups have called a 12-hour bandh in protest against the action by the security forces.

The ethnic violence that began in May 2023 between the valley-dominant Meitei community and nearly two dozen tribes known as Kukis – a term given by the British in colonial times – who are dominant in some hill areas of Manipur, has killed over 220 people and internally displaced nearly 50,000.

Armed people on both sides call themselves “village defence volunteers”, a definition of the belligerents that has become the most controversial since nothing stops these “volunteers” from killing people under the insurance provided by “in self-defence”.

The general category Meiteis want to be included under the Scheduled Tribes category, while the nearly two dozen tribes that share ethnic ties with people in neighbouring Myanmar’s Chin State and Mizoram want a separate administrative carved out of Manipur, citing discrimination and unequal share of resources and power with the Meiteis.

Imphal:

Even as the whispers about a possible leadership change in Manipur continue to get louder, Chief Minister Biren Singh has admitted that some MLAs from his party and its allies are in Delhi, but rubbished talk of their visit having anything to do with his resignation.

Over the past few days, there have been reports that a section of MLAs from the BJP and its allies, Naga People’s Front (NPF), National People’s Party (NPP) and JDU, are pushing for the chief minister to step down. 

Sources said that efforts to convince the BJP leadership to replace Mr Singh have been mounted several times since he became the chief minister in 2017 and gathered steam after the ethnic violence broke out on May 3 last year, but yielded no results. 

What’s different this time, however, is that the BJP has had to pay an electoral cost, having lost both of Manipur’s Lok Sabha seats to the Congress in the just-concluded polls.

On Friday, the chief minister said there had been a meeting with NDA allies – who have 53 of the state’s 60 Assembly seats between them, with the BJP alone accounting for 37 – the previous night, and it was decided that a memorandum for lasting peace in Manipur would be submitted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“We also discussed going to Delhi for a courtesy call with PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah. The MLAs entrusted me with getting the appointment, but since the Parliament is on and things are so hectic, I thought why should I disturb? When the meeting happens, I will also go. But some people have gone ahead. This has nothing to do with a resignation. Around 35 MLAs were present yesterday and we signed the memorandum,” Mr Singh said.

“We are also grateful to the PM and Mr Shah that they have put Manipur on their list of priorities for the first 100 days (of the new NDA term). Mr Shah has also held meetings with various agencies and our gratitude was part of the resolution,” he added. 

The situation in Manipur has been brought up forcefully again by the opposition, which has found a new voice after it managed to defy all expectations and stop the BJP short not just of its target of 370 Lok Sabha seats but even of the majority mark of 272. The INDIA alliance now has 232 members in the Lok Sabha and the BJP has 240, with allies making up the rest of the NDA’s 293. 

The ‘Almost’ Resignation 

Last June, when the pressure on his government was near its peak, the chief minister had almost quit. A minister had claimed he has left for the governor’s house with his resignation, but had turned back because of a human chain formed by hundreds of women in his support outside his residence in Imphal. It had also been claimed that his resignation letter was snatched from two ministers and torn up by people who wanted Mr Singh to remain the chief minister.

The opposition had dubbed the entire sequence of events a carefully orchestrated drama. 

Over 200 people have died and 50,000 have been displaced in the ethnic violence, which has continued to fester. 

Imphal:

When the clock struck 4 am in Manipur’s capital Imphal, a team of five people took one last look at the boxes they had loaded the night before in their SUV, and drove out towards a medicine collection point.

The boxes contained hundreds of packets of oral rehydration solution (ORS), cartons of multivitamin syrup, and common over-the-counter medicines that people in relief camps would need.

The members of the Delhi Meitei Forum (DMF), an independent civil society group of Manipur’s Meitei community living in the national capital, donated the medicines to be sent to Heirok in Thoubal district, and Jiribam district, bordering Assam, where violence broke out in the last two weeks.

Jiribam had been peaceful for more than a year until the recent flare-up, despite ethnic tensions between the Meitei community and the Kuki tribes in other parts of the state.

After giving the medicines, the DMF members headed out to a designated distribution spot, where they took out cartons of school bags that they had bought with funds donated by DMF members, who are from all walks of life and professions, many of whom have been recognised for public service.

Many students and their parents who are living in different relief camps came to the spot and met the DMF members, who handed over the school bags and notebooks.

All the students are residents of Khumujamba Meitei Leikai in Churachandpur district, from where they fled when the violence began. They are now staying at relief camps in areas including Mekola, Moirang, and the Imphal-based non-profit TAKDO.

“Some of the students are in government schools, some in private schools in Imphal and Hiyangthang,” a key DMF member told NDTV.

The member said in the spirit of the ‘Aatmanirbhar (self-reliant) Bharat’ theme, they bought the bags from the local company Romi Bag Industries, and notebooks from Sucheta Book Store in Imphal.

The DMF members had contributed whatever they could, from Rs 100, Rs 500 to Rs 1,000, to buy the items and medicines.

Despite the hardships, 93 per cent students in Manipur passed the class 10 board exams in May – the highest in the last 10 years. The Manipur Board of Secondary Education had announced that over 37,000 students gave the test, and many living in relief camps passed. The pass percentage in 2022 was 76 per cent, and in 2023 it was 82 per cent.

On its social media pages, the DMF says it is a group of “law-abiding Meitei citizens of India living in Delhi. The group is not affiliated to any other organisation or body. It’s a completely independent group working for the well-being of the Meitei community.”

DMF members say they have been carrying out activities frequently to help internally displaced people in Manipur.

New Delhi:

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday said the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) will talk to both Meitei and Kuki communities at the earliest so as to bridge the ethnic divide in Manipur.

Reviewing the security situation in Manipur here, Mr Shah directed that strict action must be taken as per law against the perpetrators of violence in the northeastern state.

The home minister said the central forces deployment will be increased, if required, and that they should be deployed strategically to restore peace and tranquillity in the state, according to an official statement.

Mr Shah also directed to ensure that no further incident of violence take place in the state which has been witnessing ethnic violence for over a year.

The MHA will talk to both the groups, Meiteis and Kukis, so as to bridge the ethnic divide at the earliest, Mr Shah was quoted as saying in the statement.

He also instructed the chief secretary of Manipur to ensure proper health and education facilities for the displaced people and their rehabilitation.

The home minister said that the Centre, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is fully committed to ensure safety and security of all citizens of the northeastern state.

Mr Shah also reviewed the situation in relief camps, especially in respect of proper availability of food, water, medicines and other basic amenities.

He underscored the importance of coordinated approach to resolve the ongoing ethnic conflict.

The Centre has been actively supporting the Manipur government in strengthening the security situation in the state, the statement said.

Ethnic violence broke out in Manipur on May 3, 2023 after a tribal solidarity march in the hill districts of the state to protest against the majority Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe status.

Since then, over 220 people belonging to both Kuki and Meitei communities and security personnel have been killed in the continuing violence. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The Meitei community of violence-hit Manipur held a protest demanding justice in Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on Friday, the day ethnic violence broke out with the Kuki-Zo tribes last year.

The community appealed to all the elected representatives of Manipur to work together with the people by taking steps towards reconciliatory efforts with the sole mission of bringing a lasting peace and harmonious co-existence in Manipur.

“One year of continuous turmoil with sporadic violence has shown that intimidation and bloodshed cannot solve any problem. It is only through dialogue that lasting peace can be achieved. But peace has to come hand in hand with justice. We have to strive for just peace. Otherwise we cannot have lasting peace,” professor Bhagat Oinam said.

Rohan Philem, a social activist, said, “Yes to peace, but no to separate administration. Yes to solidarity, but no to the so-called Kukiland. I stand with Christians, but not with the Kukiland war mongers.”

Members of the Meitei community maintain they do not seek any control of the hills where the Kuki tribes are settled. The influx of foreign infiltrators, however, has caused massive unnatural growth of villages in Kuki-dominated hill districts where Meeteis are not granted land rights and controls, they said.

Poppy plantation of tens of thousands of acres of forest reserves has caused irreversible deforestation in an uncontrolled manner and the poppy trade has infused tens of thousands of crores of narcotics-funded activities that affect Manipur and the rest of India, the organisers of the solidarity gathering said in a statement.

“Through the call for justice cry, we seek justice from both the state and central government for those who have suffered immensely from the year-long crisis,” they said.

“The propaganda of lies has unfairly portrayed the Meiteis who are the real victims of cross-border terrorism as culprits. They have been misrepresented, humiliated, targeted, unprotected, and denied timely justice,” the organisers said.

The organisers comprised DeMaS, Delhi Meetei Coordinating Committee, Global Manipur Federation, Karnataka Meitei Association, Meetei Yaipha Lup, Meitei Alliance, Meitei Diaspora in America, Meitei Heritage Society, NUPI, Souls Offered Unitedly for a Lustrated Society, ⁠Team Meitei Personalities, and World Meetei Council.