Manipur continues to grapple with intense ethnic violence, with recent incidents highlighting the deepening crisis in the northeastern Indian state. Over a year after initial tensions erupted, the region remains in a state of turmoil, marked by persistent conflict between the Kuki and Meitei communities.
In the latest escalation, ten young members of the Kuki tribe were brutally killed, allegedly by Indian security forces. Local sources and media reports suggest the killings involved severe violence, with post-mortem reports indicating extreme brutality.
The state government has responded by implementing comprehensive security measures. Nine districts of Manipur remain under a strict curfew, and mobile internet services have been suspended until December 4th(Today). The prolonged internet blackout aims to prevent the spread of inflammatory content that could further escalate tensions.
Kuki tribal representatives claim targeted killings by law enforcement, alleging a systematic approach to eliminating community members. The ongoing conflict has transformed into what many describe as a quasi-civil war, with deep-seated ethnic tensions showing no signs of immediate resolution.
The Indian government, particularly the Modi administration, has been criticized for its apparent inaction. Despite the severity of the situation, national leadership has maintained a conspicuous silence on the Manipur crisis.
Thousands of demonstrators defied curfew and staged a rally in Manipur’s Imphal East district demanding the removal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) from the state and the arrest of those responsible for the killings of three women and three children, all members of a Meitei family in Jiribam district.
Meanwhile in Jiribam district, volunteers from the Coordinating Committee of Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) student wing locked several government offices as part of a two-day campaign demanding mass operations against Kuki-Zo militants and the removal of AFSPA.
The volunteers forced government employees to vacate offices and locked the main doors.The Centre recently reimposed AFSPA, under which an area is declared as “disturbed” for the convenience of security forces to operate, in Manipur’s six police station areas, including the violence-hit Jiribam.
In a notification, the Union Home Ministry had said that the decision was taken given the continuous volatile situation there due to the ongoing ethnic violence. The police station areas where AFSPA has been reimposed include, Sekmai and Lamsang in Imphal West district, Lamlai in Imphal East district and Jiribam.
