Yaqut Ali 
Imphal/Churachandpur (Manipur): In the early hours of April 4, at 2:37 am the Rajya Sabha took up discussion on the imposition of President’s Rule in Manipur. During the debate, Union home minister Amit Shah declared, “There has been no violence in Manipur since November.”
On the ground, the numbers tell a very different story.
Between November 2024 and March 2025, at least 34 people have died in Manipur – 21 in direct clashes and 13 in relief camps, due to what locals believe is medical neglect. Among the dead are children, migrant labourers, village volunteers, and protesters.
Even after the imposition of President’s Rule in February this year, deaths have continued.
November
On November 11, Manipur witnessed one of its most violent outbursts in months.
In Jiribam district, six members of a Meitei family, including a two-year-old, went missing after a suspected Kuki insurgent attack on Meitei homes near the Borobekra relief camp. Their charred and decomposed bodies were later found in the Barak river in neighbouring Assam.
That same afternoon, militants reportedly attacked a CRPF camp, triggering retaliatory fire that left 11 suspected Kuki militants dead. The government labelled them insurgents, but the Kuki-Zo Council called them village defence volunteers. In protest, the council enforced a 13-hour shutdown across hill districts.
A few days later, as protests erupted in Jiribam over the killings, a 20-year-old protester, K. Athouba, was shot dead during a clash with security forces.
December
On December 14, two teenage migrant workers from Gopalganj in Bihar – Sunalal Kumar (18) and Dasharat Kumar (17) – were killed in Keirak of Kakching district while returning home from work. Police confirmed they were attacked by unknown assailants, and the case remains unresolved.
That same month, then chief minister N. Biren Singh issued a public apology, acknowledging the state’s failure to ensure peace.
March
When President’s Rule was imposed in February 2025, many hoped it would mark a turning point. But even under central control, deaths have continued. One Kuki man was killed and 48 Kuki people were injured on March 8, as violent clashes erupted in Manipur, on the first day on which Union home minister Amit Shah’s order of free movement between the valley and the hills came into force. Police have said that 27 security personnel were injured as well.
Beyond the violence, a silent crisis is unfolding inside relief camps. The Kuki Khanglai Lawmpi (KKL) claims that at least 13 displaced individuals from the Kuki-Zo community have died since November, allegedly due to lack of medical care.
While the Union government maintains that normalcy has returned, Manipur continues to suffer. More than 250 people have died since violence began in May 2023 and over 60,000 are still living in relief camps.