Since the Meitei-Kuki clash erupted on May 3 in Manipur, a demand for separate Kuki administration has emerged. This has led to the Meitei community fearing a threat to Manipur’s territorial integrity. Therefore, the Meiteis have been opposing any aspirations which go against the state’s territorial integrity. The past shows that this uncompromising stand for territorial integrity among the Meiteis is not new.
The recent violence is very unfortunate. It’s been over a month now, and yet the violence still persists. But the worst part is the Indian government has failed to stop the violence. Their response is “too little and too late.” Is there any hidden agenda behind it? Why is the Indian government not trying to find a feasible way at the earliest? Is there any reason for being silent for a very long time?
Why should we not say it is a discriminatory action of the Indian government? Is the Indian government deliberately ignoring Manipur because violence does not affect mainland India? Would the government of India handle the way it handled Manipur if the violence was in Delhi?
Both the Meitei and the Kuki communities have been suffering. People’s big question to the Indian government is why one of the strongest armies in the world is not capable enough to handle such violence. Our home state is still burning and people are dying under the watch of the central government. All the innocent people of Manipur deserve to live. Manipur is a highly militarised zone. It has been under the watch of the Indian armed forces and guarded well with a large number of modern sophisticated weapons a long way back before this violence escalated in every nook and corner to suppress the insurgents. Recently, another fresh 40,000 have joined to protect us. But the miscreants or terrorists continue to rise, and the violence still persists at the periphery of the valley area.
There is also a big mistrust in Assam Rifles allegedly claiming for taking the side of a particular group. On the contrary, people believe in the power that controls them. Our people do not realize till now that the Assam Riffles or any other arm forces are under the control of the Indian state. But people started to lose trust in the Indian arm forces. We must understand Indian army is just following orders. They don’t act on their own. Who do you think controls the Indian army? And I don’t find any purpose in the army being deployed in the state as they are not helpful at all.
How come the Indian state is dreaming of a future superpower when it can’t even handle such small issues? India is well known for its role in UN peacekeeping missions around the world. However, they are not able to bring peace in such a small state like Manipur.
The Meiteis’ ST demand has nothing to do with the clash. This clash seems to be the result of divide and rule policy propagated by some unknown powers who have a common interest. There was also an incident where three RAF (Rapid Action Force) of the Indian paramilitary force were caught in an attempt to torch down shops in Imphal. Behind it, there must be certain interest groups who get benefit from this violent clash. But it is very disappointing for those who dream of a united Manipur. We can see it has elements of the separatist movements of Manipur.
Apart from Nagas and Kuki, there are separatist groups which have been fighting for the idea of independent Manipur. Those groups do not intend to negotiate at the table with the Indian government so far. The conflict between two groups usually arises out of different needs and political goals. Indian government’s counterinsurgency operations have been successful except in some states. So, a divide-and-rule policy could be used as their one means to end the insurgency and strengthen Indian nationalism. Otherwise, things could have been solved at the earliest. To weaken their idea of a separative movement, the Indian government must be trying all possible ways to not secede Manipur from the Indian state. Lots of groups are already at the negotiating table with the Indian government while some are not willing to come down to the negotiation table. Such separatist groups must be a big headache to the Indian government.
These clashes let the people of Manipur think their fate is in the hand of the central government. People started to look up to the Indian state as their saviour. They seem to admit that their fate is in their hands. Now, the people of Manipur mainly Meitei feared losing territorial integrity, calling for protection from the central government. As a result, the legitimacy of the separatist movement is diminishing. Hence the fate of the separatist movement is likely to perish away from the people. People started working to bring favourable policy outcomes from the Indian state.
Whether the central government deliberately did or not, the Indian state has benefited from this clash. The Kukis would never support the idea of independent Manipur. This is a big gain for the Indian state. Having different political aspirations among the different ethnic groups weakened the separatist movement. As long as Manipur is divided into different sections, the idea of independent Manipur is losing sight of the separatist groups and their supporters. Their sight of independence is distant, so people started lobbying to get their position and demands within the Indian constitution. That is exactly what the Indian government wanted.
In this manner, the counterinsurgency policy of the Indian government has proved immensely successful. After this infamous clash, the territory and integrity of Manipur may not be broken apart, but people are already divided based on ethnicity. The political aspiration of certain groups and people are narrowing down.
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The Indian government should be held responsible for the violence. They should find a way to bring normalcy and peace to Manipur and an amicable solution as soon as possible. Our people of Manipur should know that killing and fighting each other will sink us together, not Delhi. Let peace prevail soon.
India should look up to Manipur’s historical status. The state needs the respect it deserves. If India cannot guarantee the protection of Manipur, people will start losing faith in the Indian state.
Also Read | Opinion: A cry for political justice amid ongoing violence in Manipur
Some meiteis are coming up with different opinions now unlike the radical thinking of cmBiren & meitei leepun chief pramod Sink. Reason being the truth is unfolding slowly & steadily. Biren & pramod Sink has been instigating & brainwashing meitei youths by feeding incorrect info about kukis. The riot cud have been douse on 3rd May itself by CM but he didn’t do it as he is the one propagating the event. They thought it is to their advantage. Separate administration have never been on table for the kuki-zomi-mizo tribals. But they were compelled to demand for it under the circumstances. The violence in manipur is to achieve the narrow political aspiration of the meitei populace i.e., to wipe out the kukis & grab their land which is a bad deed.