IMPHAL, India: The chief minister of India’s violence-hit northeastern state of Manipur apologised on Tuesday for months of ethnic violence that has claimed at least 250 lives.
The conflict between the majority Meitei and the tribal Kuki communities in the state started in May 2023 and has displaced 60,000 people. Despite peace efforts, many Kukis and Meiteis have moved out of ethnically mixed areas of the state of 3.2 million people.
Various residential buildings, businesses, and places of worship have been destroyed in the continued unrest.
The violence began after a court ordered the state government to consider providing the special economic benefits and quotas in government jobs and education enjoyed by the Kuki people to the Meitei population as well.
The conflict, reached a new peak in September when Kuki separatists launched a series of attacks in the Imphal city.
So far Modi’s led BJP administration has failed to restore peace and stability in the violence-hit state which continues to grapple with ethnic, religious and linguistic tensions during the government’s third term.
“This entire year has been very unfortunate,” Chief Minister Biren Singh told reporters in the state capital Imphal.
“I want to say sorry to the people of the state for what’s happening … many people lost their loved ones. Many people left their homes. I feel regret, I apologise.”
Although attacks and killings continue in the state, Singh said peace efforts had made progress in recent months, and he believed normality would return in the area.
Manipur’s two largest ethnic groups are effectively vying for land, jobs, and political power, with a significant number of weapons in circulation.
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The Kukis have accused Singh, a Meitei and member of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), of being complicit in attacks on their community and have called for his removal.
Singh denies these allegations, and Modi’s federal government has rejected opposition claims of inaction, stating that it has deployed tens of thousands of security personnel and that the situation is improving.
It is pertinent to mention that the BJP lost its two Manipur parliamentary seats in the last elections, due to the frustration and anger among the Meitei and Kuki communities. Even though Modi claims that Manipur will return to normalcy, the reality is quite different.
