Union Govt to Sign SoO Pact With Kuki-Zo Insurgent Groups Amid 'Separate Administration' Demands
New Delhi: Talks between the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Kuki-Zo insurgent groups on the renewal of the Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement entered a decisive phase on September 3, with negotiations expected to conclude today, September 4.
According to reliable sources, the MHA will go ahead with the signing of the extension – despite strong opposition from various Meitei groups who have demanded that the ceasefire arrangement be scrapped, alleging that ground rules were violated by Kuki-Zo insurgent groups during the ethnic conflict.
The development comes just amidst talk of Prime Minister Narendra Modi possibly visiting Manipur this month. Modi is set to visit neighbouring Assam on September 13.
Sources said the latest round of discussions has brought together senior representatives from the Union government, state authorities, and Kuki armed groups. On the government side, the meeting was led by Rajesh Kambley, Joint Director (North East), of the Union home ministry and A.K. Mishra, Interlocutor and Advisor for the North East to the Union home ministry.
Manipur which remains under President’s Rule since February this year, was represented in the SoO renewal meeting by Ashutosh Kumar, the state's Additional Director General of Police and Ashok, senior officer from the state home department.
During the political dialogue between the groups and the Union government's representatives, Manipur representatives are excluded.
On the Kuki-Zo side, four representatives each from the Kuki National Organisation (KNO) and the United People’s Front (UPF) have participated in the meeting. The SoO extension agreement is expected to carry the signatures of these leaders along with the Joint Secretary (North East), MHA.
Sources present in the meeting told The Wire, “On September 3, leaders from the Kuki-Zo Council (KZC) met MHA officials in Delhi around 12 noon. Later that afternoon, around 3 pm, the MHA continued talks with representatives of the SoO groups, but the discussions ended without resolution. However both sides have reached an understanding, with the signing of the SoO extension.”
Demands
While the renewal of the SoO pact appears imminent, the Kuki-Zo groups have continued to press their demand for a ‘separate administration’ carved out of Manipur – something which gained currency since the ethnic conflict of 2023 broke out. The Wire has learnt that the Union government has, so far, avoided making any firm commitments on the political demands, including separate administration of the Kuki-Zo majority districts, and has limited the discussions to the technical extension of the ceasefire.
Meanwhile, various Meitei organisations have repeatedly urged the government to scrap the SoO arrangement altogether, accusing Kuki-Zo militants of violating ground rules and fuelling the ethnic clashes that have torn through the northeastern state since May 2023.
The timing of the agreement has added political weight, seeing that Modi is likely to visit Manipur. If the visit to Manipur comes through, it would be Modi’s first, after the ethnic conflict in which more than 260 people were killed, thousands of people lost their livelihood, and over 60,000 were displaced. Thousands continue to live in overcrowded relief camps and have uncertain futures. The conflict has left the border state virtually divided into two based on community lines.
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