Imphal/New Delhi:

Three MLAs from among the 10 who have been demanding a separate administration carved out of Manipur have clarified that they want their own tribes to be called by their correct names, instead of being associated only with the term “Kuki-Zo”.

The 10 MLAs including seven from the BJP have so far been described in the press and social media as belonging to the “Kuki-Zo” tribes. The three MLAs, however, in statements in the last two days said the term “Kuki-Zo” is not adequate to refer to their own tribes.

The three MLAs from the Hmar, Paite, and Vaiphei tribes who issued the statements are LM Khaute, Ngursanglur Sanate, and Vungzagin Valte.

“… I would like to reaffirm that the most suitable and inclusive term to describe our community in the media, social media and so on is ‘Kuki-Zomi-Hmar… I cannot accept anything that excludes ‘Zomi’ and any other term that describes our identity in such press statements,” Mr Khaute said in the statement.

Mr Sanate said he will not endorse any platform, organisation or statement that excludes the term “Hmar” tribe.

The third MLA, Mr Valte, in a strongly worded statement said it has become “pivotal” for him to declare that he is from the Paite tribe belonging to the Zomi community, that Zomi is an accepted nomenclature as it reflects the “true historical, culture, and social identity of our people.”

“… The recent usage of ‘Kuki-Zo’ is perceived by many within my represented communities as non-inclusive and assimilative… Therefore, I cannot, in good conscience, accept and endorse any term that doesn’t respect the individuality and dignity of all the groups that form the fabric of my constituency,” said Mr Valte.

The three MLAs’ statements come days after a section of the Thadou tribes represented by the Manipur-based Thadou Students’ Association (TSA) formed a global platform to look into critical issues facing the community, particularly in Manipur.

The TSA has said Thadou is a distinct tribe and people with their own distinct identity, language and culture. “… At some point other people may have called Thadous with different names… that does not change the fact that we are Thadou and we should be called Thadou respectfully,” the TSA said in a statement on August 5.

Manipur BJP spokesperson T Michael Lamjathang Haokip, who is from the Thadou tribe, in a post on X said the three Hmar, Paite, and Vaiphei MLAs’ statements “have explicitly stated they are not Kuki, raising questions about the true identity of Kuki.”

“… The remaining 7 MLAs should adhere to their tribe identities to reach a common consensus. The individual statements of the 3 MLAs signify their rejection of Kuki supremacists… The disunited Zo tribal groups, united only in their desire to remove the Chief Minister and hostility against the Meitei, must cease targeting innocent lives and work towards a peaceful solution. The proxy unity aimed at ousting the Chief Minister for political gains should not come at the cost of innocent lives and communal harmony,” Mr Michael said.

During the discussion and voting on demands for grants on the last day of the Manipur assembly session on August 12, Chief Minister N Biren Singh had said “violence was perpetrated by some, not all, people.”

“Not every Thadou, Paite, Hmar had a hand in the violence. You have seen, Hmar people spoke so well (in the peace meeting), we had tears, they too had tears, that all this happened due to misunderstandings,” Mr Singh had said, referring to the August 1 peace meeting between Meitei and the Hmar tribe representatives in Jiribam, where they agreed to work for normalcy nearly two months after ethnic violence that began over a year ago reached the district bordering Assam.

The clashes between the valley-dominant Meitei community and nearly two dozen tribes known as Kukis – a term given by the British in colonial times – who are dominant in some hill areas of Manipur, has killed over 220 people and internally displaced nearly 50,000.

The general category Meiteis want to be included under the Scheduled Tribes category, while the nearly two dozen tribes that share ethnic ties with people in neighbouring Myanmar’s Chin State and Mizoram want a separate administration carved out of Manipur, citing discrimination and unequal share of resources and power with the Meiteis.

Imphal/Guwahati:

A global umbrella body of civil society organisations of Manipur’s Meitei community has condemned a letter by 10 Kuki MLAs that alleged the Centre is withdrawing two Assam Rifles battalions to fan more violence in the ethnic crisis-hit state.

The 10 MLAs along with two dozen Kuki-Zo insurgent groups under the suspension of operations (SoO) agreement and new groups like the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) have been demanding a separate administration carved out of Manipur.

In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi last week, the 10 Kuki MLAs had said the Assam Rifles is a neutral force amid the deep division in Manipur and the two battalions, which are guarding two sensitive areas, if withdrawn would likely lead to attacks by the Meiteis.

The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) is set to take over duties in the two areas earlier guarded by the Assam Rifles.

“Meitei Alliance condemns 10 MLAs from Manipur (representing a faction of Kuki and related communities) who wrote a letter to the Prime Minister accusing the Home Minister of a ‘sinister design’ of an ‘ethnic cleansing campaign’ against their communities,” the civil society group said in a statement.

“The letter challenges the Home Ministry’s authority in internal security matters, such as the relocation of the two Assam Rifles (battalions) from Manipur to elsewhere for counter-insurgency operations. This was a decision taken by military planners in the best interests of India’s internal security. However, the Kuki MLAs in their hour of brinkmanship have defamed and maligned the Home Ministry by saying it acted on the pressure of the Manipur government,” the Meitei Alliance said.

“These 10 MLAs, who have been misleading their communities for a long time, now in desperation are speaking lies. How can any responsible legislature in India say that the government of India would relocate or withdraw security forces to enable genocide within the country?” the Meitei Alliance said.

“As the two AR battalions would be replaced by the CRPF, they questioned the efficiency of the latter in such a manner that it amounted to portrayal of the force as a sectarian communal force deployed with a ‘sinister design’ against their communities. The MLAs’ accusations are defamatory, anti-national, derogatory, and meant to malign India’s security establishment,” the Meitei Alliance said, adding the 10 Kuki MLAs should instead take actions that could bring peace to the state.

The Assam Rifles has maintained a neutral stance since ethnic violence began in Manipur in May 2023, the dual-role force’s Director General Lieutenant General PC Nair (retired) had said last month, and termed as “stupid reports” allegations that the Assam Rifles has been “favouring one community and not the other”. Lt General Nair had said to call the Assam Rifles biased towards a particular community is “nothing but rumours” spread by some people with a hidden agenda.

“… From the first day, the Assam Rifle has maintained a neutral stand [in Manipur]. All these narratives that have been coming are agenda-driven. It makes me laugh when I read some of these stupid reports saying the Assam Rifles is favouring one community, not favouring the other. These are nothing but rumours, falsehoods, preposterous,” Lt General Nair had told news agency ANI.

The AR is under the administrative control of the Home Ministry and operational control of the army. It guards the 1,600-km-long Indo-Myanmar border, of which nearly 400 km is in Manipur, where it also functions as the primary counter-insurgency force making its task a dual-role one. There are some Border Security Force (BSF) battalions in Manipur, but they are not specifically tasked with guarding the Indo-Myanmar border.

BSF Additional Director General (ADG) PK Mishra had told NEWS9 channel that a massive failure of command and control coordination in Manipur has made central forces’ intervention ineffective in Manipur, where the valley-dominant Meitei community and nearly two dozen tribes known as Kukis – a term given by the British in colonial times – who are dominant in some hill areas of Manipur, have been fighting.

The general category Meiteis want to be included under the Scheduled Tribes category, while the nearly two dozen tribes that share ethnic ties with people in neighbouring Myanmar’s Chin State and Mizoram want a separate administration carved out of Manipur, citing discrimination and unequal share of resources and power with the Meiteis.