New Delhi: More than 50 Kuki women were injured Tuesday in a clash with security personnel at Saibol village in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district, with one of them hit by a rubber bullet in the left eye, the Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU) said.
The 45-year-old woman was being transferred to a hospital in Guwahati, locals said, adding that her 18-year-old daughter was also injured during the protest.
The incident occurred when a group of women attempted to disrupt the deployment of Army, Border Security Force (BSF), and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel at the Saibol Lungtin subdivision in Kangpokpi district, according to the Manipur Police.
“The joint SF dispersed the crowd with minimum use of force and now the situation is peaceful and under control. The Joint SF are deployed at the hilltop to dominate the area and prevent any untoward incident in the area,” the Manipur Police said in a post on ‘X’.
The Kukis are in majority at Kangpokpi district. The Saibol village is nearly 2 km away from Twichin, which falls in the ‘buffer zone’ between the Kuki-dominated hills and the Meitei-dominated Imphal Valley.
The clash comes on a day when Chief Minister N. Biren Singh apologised for the violence that has engulfed Manipur since May last year. He urged for calm and unity on the eve of the new year.
Locals told ThePrint that over 80 Kuki women were protesting against the “forceful occupation” of the community bunkers by security personnel in Saibol village. “Lathi charge and tear gas were used by the security forces to disperse the crowd,” said one of the locals.
Most of the injured are being treated at the Saikul community health centre.
One of the women protesters said that the stir was happening since Monday night and alleged that the security forces “forcefully” crossed the buffer zone. “They assaulted us with lathis and with their rifles, fired tear gas shells and pushed us aside from the site,” the 32-year-old woman from Saibol village told ThePrint.
The deployment of the security forces had been announced 22 November. It followed the abduction and killing of six members of a Meitei family in Jiribam district. Security Adviser Kuldiep Singh had said that the Centre would deploy 90 Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) companies—approximately 9,000 personnel—in the state.
In response to Tuesday’s incident, CoTU announced an “indefinite economic blockade” on National Highway 2 (NH-2), the group’s spokesperson Lun Kipgen told ThePrint.
In November 2023, a road was built to connect the Manipur subdivision to this highway. NH-2 is crucial for northeastern states like Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, and Mizoram, supporting the movement of goods, services, and people. The strategic route connects remote areas to urban centres and markets.
“We already have the 4th Mahar regiment deployed in Saikul who are enough to maintain peace and no other CAPF are needed,” Kipgen told ThePrint. “If additional CAPF is needed, why deployment from the Valley when CRPF personnel are already in Kangpokpi?”
Condemning the incident, Kuki Inpi, the apex body of the Kuki community, demanded the establishment of buffer zones which should be “honoured and strictly enforced”.
“The central forces must take immediate and decisive action to neutralise and disarm the armed Meitei groups who continue to terrorise and destabilise the lives of the Kuki-Zo people,” the group said in a statement.
In Imphal, the Manipur chief minister gave out a message of peace to the people at large. “This entire year has been very unfortunate. I feel regret and I want to say sorry to the people of the state for what has been happening till today, since last 3 May. Many people lost loved ones. Many people left their homes. I really feel regret,” the CM said at a press conference.
(Edited by Sanya Mathur)
Also Read: What’s behind Centre’s decision to send ex-home secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla to Manipur as governor
The Indian armed forces must be allowed to deal with the narco-terrorists operating across the Indo-Myanmar border. The border must be sealed with intense patrolling – just like the LoC in Kashmir.
Also, every single illegal immigrant from Myanmar currently reading in Manipur must be rounded up and deported at the earliest. No compromises at all.
Kuki-Hmar-Zo people are originally from Myanmar. They are not Indians. They do not consider themselves as Indians.
Each Kuki-Hmar-Zo must be rounded up and deported at the earliest. There must not be any leniency as far as national security is concerned.