New Delhi: A meeting to discuss the Manipur violence, organised by the Union home ministry in the national capital on October 15, saw the presence of state legislators from the Kuki, Meitei and Naga communities – but not of home minister Amit Shah.
The latter was a point of disappointment for the attending MLAs, a source told The Wire. “The MLAs had expected Shah’s presence to lend more weight to the first peace talk by the home ministry,” the source added.
Ethnic strife in Manipur, which began on May 3, 2023, has claimed at least 237 lives and displaced over 60,000 people. There have been questions on the state administration’s ability to tackle it.
Notably, no MLA or political leader from the opposition was invited to this peace meeting. Leader of opposition Meghachandra, who is in New Delhi, expressed his disappointment at having been excluded.
The meeting, which began at 1.30 pm at Delhi’s Khan Market, was led by the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Northeast in-charge, Sambit Patra, alongside home ministry advisor A.K. Mishra, Manipur Special Intelligence Bureau joint director Rajesh Kumble, and Rajya Sabha MP Ajit Gopchade. Representing the Kuki-Zo community were MLAs Haokholet Kipgen, Letpao Haokip, Ngursanglur Sanate and Nemcha Kipgen.
According to more than one source present in the meeting, while MLAs from all three communities were invited, MLAs of the Kuki-Zo community held a separate meeting with home ministry officials, where they reiterated their demand for a separate administration for their community.
Following the meeting, two press releases were issued. One by the home ministry and another by Kuki-Zo MLAs.
The home ministry’s statement read:
“A group of elected members of the Manipur Assembly, representing the Kuki-Zo-Hmar, Meitei, and Naga communities, met in New Delhi today to discuss the current scenario in the State. The meeting unanimously resolved to appeal to all communities to shun the path of violence so that no more precious lives of innocent citizens are lost.”
However, more than one source told The Wire that no such resolution for an appeal took place.
“There was no meaningful exchange about peace; the officials merely instructed the MLAs to return to Manipur and promote peace,” one insider claimed. Samit Patra assured the MLAs that another meeting would be convened soon, he said.
The Kuki-Zo MLAs’ press statement took a stance, emphasising the demand for separate administration.
“The Kuki-Zo community remains committed to advocating solely for the people’s interests. A Separate Administration for the Kuki-Zo community is a prerequisite for any meaningful peace dialogue.”
The Kuki-Zo MLAs expressed their full confidence in the leadership of the Kuki National Organisation (KNO) and the United People’s Front (UPF), and insisted that they had no additional demands beyond those already presented by the KNO-UPF. They also called for the resumption of political dialogue with KNO-UPF leadership at the earliest.
Furthermore, the Kuki-Zo MLAs reiterated their refusal to participate in joint meetings with Meitei and Naga MLAs until further consultations with their communities had taken place.