Manipur: Centre Against Kuki-Zos’ Demand for UT with Legislature

Kolkata: Kuki-Zo outfits in Manipur are, for all practical purposes, rejecting the Union government’s contention that “the current policy does not support creation of new Union territories” and, therefore, there is no question of conceding Kuki-Zo organisations’ demand for creation of a Union territory (UT) with a legislature for the hill areas inhabited predominantly by them. Their premise, as mentioned often at officially held meetings and through representations to the authorities, is that “co-existence under the [existing] Manipur administrative set-up [with the majoritarian Meiteis] is no longer possible”. The violent ethnic cleansing that began in Imphal and other areas on May 3, 2023 has changed the situation in the North Eastern state.

As for New Delhi’s stance that its current policy does not support the creation of new UTs, the Kuki-Zo outfits’ counter argument is that “the Constitution is above the Government policy … ; the ground zero situation in the state … made co-existence impossible, requiring invocation of provisions of the Constitution to secure Kuki-Zo lives and property”.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) held meetings on November 6 and 7 with the representatives of United Peoples’ Front (UPF) and Kuki National Organisation (KNO), which are the two umbrella organisations of 24 insurgent groups under the purview of the Suspension of Operation (SoO). The MHA team was led by advisor (north-East) A K Mishra.

The two-day deliberations marked a major bilateral engagement after September 4 last when the defunct SoO was reactivated with new terms covering settlement within the Constitution, territorial integrity assurances, cadre verification, deportation of foreign nationals and camp relocation.

The tripartite SoO had been in place since 2008 with provision for extension at pre-determined intervals.  However, on February 29, 2024, that is 10 months after the outbreak of ethnic violence on May 3, 2023 and by when law and order had collapsed, then Chief Minister N Biren Singh opted out of the tripartite deal contending that the SoO groups had been violating the ground rules of the deal. [Before May 3, 2023 the SoO groups were seeking autonomous territorial councils within Manipur. After the escalation of violence, they started raising the demand for UT status with legislarure].

Interestingly, while stating that New Delhi’s current policy does not support creation of new UTs, Mishra told the UPF and KNO representatives that consultations with other communities in Manipur too were necessary. As inquiries by NewsClick from Manipur watchers suggested, it was clear to the Kuki-Zo participants that the Centre was indirectly referring to the strong and persistent opposition of Meitei civil society organisations (CSO) to any suggestion for disrupting the prevailing integrated structure of Manipur as a state.

In less than 10 days after talks with the MHA team, political and CSO leaders of the Kuki-Zo tribes held a meeting in Guwahati on November 14 and 15 to finalise what has been described as “a statement of consolidated political and constitutional aspirations”, which was released on November 17. The statement has been headlined ‘Nampi Conclave Declaration [The Telegraph newspaper has quoted a civil society leader according to whom Nampi means Kuki-Zo nation].

The statement details the resolutions adopted at the two-day Guwahati session. Perhaps, the strongest of the resolutions is that all sections of the populace are to be unified, galvanised to relentlessly pursue the constitutionally valid objective of having a UT with legislature until the Centre concedes the demand. May 3 is to be formally designated and observed as a ‘Separation Day’ to commemorate the political and communal events of that period.

There is an urgent necessity for the Union government to comprehensively address the grievances and protracted suffering of the Kuki-Zo people. The protracted suffering, it has been argued, has forced the constituent tribes to reaffirm their commitment to the creation of a separate administration in the format of a UT with legislature.

The leadership also decided to constitute a working group with a mandate to facilitate continuous, structured engagement among the leadership of UPF, KNO, Kuki-Zo Council (KZC) and the wider Kuki-Zo society.

For political mobilisation, a centralised approach has been preferred with the responsibility for coordination assigned to KZC, which is to act as the apex outfit for all political initiatives. There will also be a joint political movement working committee, which will serve as the sole representative entity for both UPF and KNO “in all formal and substantive dialogue processes” with New Delhi.

Meanwhile, the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (Cocomi), has strongly reacted to the plea of the SoO leaders to the Centre at the New Delhi sessions on November 6 and 7 to take concrete steps to protect traditional land rights and uphold the authority of chiefs, who traditionally manage land and customary matters in the hill areas.

New Delhi was also urged then to remove administrative hurdles to succession of village chiefs after their demise and simplify procedures for land registration and deed processing, which currently require travel to Imphal, an area that has become inaccessible and unsafe for Kuki-Zos.

Cocomi’s convener Khuraijam Athouba has, in a memorandum dated November 17 to the Prime Minister, urged that the suggestions of the SoO gropus be dismissed as these are “ahistorical”. The assertion related to ancestral land rights by the Kukis, as advanced by UPF and KNO, lacks historical validity, legal foundation and cultural authenticity. Their identity is a colonial construct and their settlement was facilitated by British policy.         

The writer is a senior freelance journalist based in Kolkata.