New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi finally visited violence-hit Manipur on Saturday (September 13), more than two years after the state's ethnic conflict erupted in May 2023. His itinerary covered both Churachandpur and Imphal, where he appealed to the Kuki-Zo and Meitei communities to “end violence” and look toward “development”.

The prime minister laid the foundation stone for projects worth over Rs 7,000 crore in the predominantly Kuki-Zo Churachandpur, claiming they would “better the lives of the people of Manipur and those living in the hills”.

Modi also highlighted a Rs 22,000 crore investment in the Jiribam-Imphal railway line, asserting that after 2014 – when he became prime minister – his ‘focus has been to work on Manipur’s connectivity’.

However, The Wire has learnt that Manipur's only railway station of Khongsang has remained non-operational for passengers since the outbreak of the conflict. For over two years, no civilian has been able to board or alight from a train there.

Similarly, Modi spoke about helicopter services to and from Imphal. The service, first announced by home minister Amit Shah, was intended to ensure that the Kuki-Zo community could access the state’s only functional airport in the state's capital city.

Yet, Kuki-Zo people continue to use airports in Dimapur in Nagaland or Aizawl in Mizoram, fearing attacks if they enter Imphal.

Since the outbreak of the violence, the predominantly Meitei Imphal valley and the surrounding hills where Kuki-Zo people are a majority have been physically separated by ‘buffer zones’ patrolled by security forces in a bid to keep ethnic violence between the two communities at bay.

The prime minister further pointed to schemes for building pucca houses, claiming that nearly 60,000 families in Manipur had benefitted.

But the ground reality tells a different story: the number of persons displaced by Manipur's ethnic conflict is well over 60,000, with their homes razed as entire villages were burned down.

Modi also argued that before 2014 it was “tough to visit villages” in Manipur but that under his leadership roads have connected even remote corners of the state. However survivors of the ethnic conflict hesitate to return to their own villages, as violence continues to mark the landscape.

People's demands remain unheard

For the past two and a half years, survivors in relief camps have repeatedly demanded that the prime minister visit them directly. Many hoped such a visit would allow him to witness their pain first-hand and speed up their rehabilitation. Instead, Modi called people out from camps to meet him, leaving many disappointed.

The people's larger demands remain unchanged since the outbreak of violence: Kuki-Zo people continue to press for complete separation from Manipur and demand a distinct administrative arrangement, while the Meitei community insists on the implementation of the National Register of Citizens in the state so that the government can identify undocumented immigrants living there.

This demand for separation was reiterated in a joint memorandum submitted by Kuki-Zo MLAs to the prime minister during his visit. Eleven legislators from the tribal community urged an early political settlement.

The MLAs said their people had been “totally cleansed from the valley areas of Manipur, shamed, assaulted, raped and ravaged”, accusing the state of complicity in what they described as “unprecedented ethnic persecution”.

Declaring that the two communities could “live in peace only as good neighbours, never under the same roof again”, the signatories appealed to the prime minister to expedite dialogue and grant a separate Union territory with a legislature.

“We believe this alone will bring lasting peace and a sense of security, justice and belonging to our people,” the memorandum concluded.

The memorandum was signed by Thanlon BJP MLA Vungzagin Valte, Tipaimukh BJP MLA Ngursanglur Sanate, Singngat MLA of the Kuki People's Alliance (KPA) Chinlunthang Manlun, Henglep BJP MLA Letzamang Haokip, Saikot BJP MLA Paolienlal Haokip, Churachandpur BJP MLA Lallianmang Khaute, Tengnoupal BJP MLA Letpao Haokip, Saikul KPA MLA Kimneo Hangshing, Saitu independent MLA Haokholet Kipgen and Kangpokpi BJP MLA Nemcha Kipgen.

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