A key organisation representing a section of the Kuki and Zomi tribes in Manipur has decided to open the state's lifeline, National Highway-02, for free movement of commuters and cargo two years after ethnic clashes broke out in the state bordering Myanmar.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in a statement today confirmed the assurance given by the Churachandpur-based Kuki Zo Council (KZC) of allowing free movement, ahead of a strong buzz that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to visit Manipur soon.
The MHA also announced the renewal of the controversial Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement with two umbrella organisations representing a mix of two dozen Kuki, Zomi and Hmar insurgent groups in Manipur, with the condition that the territorial integrity of Manipur will not be touched.
The tripartite SoO agreement signed between the Kuki insurgent groups and the Centre and the state government agreed on the need for a negotiated solution to bring lasting peace and stability in Manipur.
The SoO agreement was first formally signed in 2008. Every year, a joint monitoring group reviews the agreement and decides its future. Broadly, the SoO agreement says the insurgents are to stay at designated camps and their weapons kept in locked storage, to be monitored regularly.
The two dozen insurgent groups come under two umbrella groups - the Kuki National Organisation (KNO), and the United People's Front (UPF). These two representing the others signed the SoO agreement.
The KZC's decision to allow free movement on NH-2 came after a series of meetings with MHA in the last few days in Delhi. The KZC has given commitment to cooperate with security forces deployed by the Centre to maintain peace along NH-02, the MHA said in the statement today.
At the same time, a tripartite meeting of representatives from the MHA, Manipur government, KNO and UPF was held in Delhi today, where they signed the renewed SoO agreement on "re-negotiated terms and conditions (ground rules)" applicable for one year, the MHA said.
The KNO and the UPF have agreed to relocate seven designated camps away from areas vulnerable to conflict, reduce the number of designated camps, and relocate weapons with the nearest camps of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and the Border Security Force (BSF).
There will be stringent physical verification of insurgents by the security forces to de-list foreign nationals, if any, and the joint monitoring group will closely monitor enforcement of ground rules, the MHA said.
Violations [of ground rules] will be dealt with firmly in future, including review of the SoO agreement, the MHA said.
Any attempt to disturb free movement on or along NH-02 in Manipur will be dealt with firmly, MHA sources told NDTV. The KZC members understood that dialogue and talks with the Centre can continue even after ensuring free movement of people, which will bring relief to the common people in the valley as well as the hills, they said.
While KZC has agreed to allow free movement on NH-02, another Churachandpur-based organisation, Zomi Council (ZC), has opposed the move over what it alleged was lack of safeguards for the interests of the Zomi tribes.
"The reopening of NH-2 (Dimapur-Imphal road) is not for us. It is a move designed solely to serve the majoritarian Meitei community, while the people of Churachandpur (Lamka) continue to suffer shortages, hunger and unending sacrifices. In this context, it would be nothing short of betrayal for the Kuki-Zo Council (KZC) or any other body to sign an MoU that would not safeguard the interests of our people. We cannot endorse such an idea of agreement as it would abandon the very community we represent," the Zomi Council said in a statement on Monday while the KZC and the MHA were still in talks.
This difference of opinion between the various Kuki and Zomi groups on allowing free movement on NH-02 may affect how exactly the arrangement will work out, Manipur government sources said.
"People from all communities, Meitei or Kuki, whether living in the valley or the hills, will be able to use the National Highway without worry. The security forces have been given strict instructions that there should be no lapse in dealing with troublemakers," a state official told NDTV.
Manipur is under the President's rule; the assembly has been put under suspended animation following the resignation of N Biren Singh as chief minister in February.
SoO Agreement's Challenges
The Manipur assembly on February 29, 2024 unanimously passed a resolution asking the Centre to scrap the SoO.
The Kuki tribes have been calling for the arrest of Arambai Tenggol chief Korounganba Khuman, alleging he heads a radical Meitei outfit that attacked Kuki villages during the ethnic clashes. The Meiteis have pointed back at hundreds of Kuki youths carrying modern assault rifles under numerous banners of 'volunteer' groups, who the Meiteis say are infested with highly trained Kuki militants linked to the SoO agreement.
The state government has been demanding to end the SoO agreement over allegations that SoO-linked militants have been taking part in the Manipur violence, as also militants from several banned Meitei groups that had nearly been eradicated from Manipur in the last 10 years, only to return from their hideouts in neighbouring Myanmar after the breakout of ethnic clashes in May 2023.
The Manipur Police and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) have on record stated the involvement of both Meitei and Kuki insurgents in the ethnic clashes. Many cases are under investigation. Three insurgents of the SoO-signatory Kuki Liberation Army (KLA) and another insurgent of the Meitei group United National Liberation Front (Pambei), or UNLF(P), were killed in a gunfight in Jiribam district in September 2024.
Former Manipur chief minister and Congress leader Okram Ibobi Singh told the state assembly on March 1, 2024 that the Assam Rifles and Kuki insurgent groups signed an agreement in 2005 - without informing the state government.
"The two signed the agreement without the knowledge of the Manipur government. The police continued to arrest the insurgents, and in 2008 the formal SoO with the state government's participation was signed," Ibobi Singh told the assembly.
The state government discovered the existence of the 2005 "ceasefire" agreement when, during police operations against Kuki insurgents, the state forces were often requested to stand down.
The valley-dominant Meitei community and the Kuki tribes, who are dominant in some hill areas of Manipur, have been fighting since May 2023 over a range of issues such as land rights and political representation. Over 260 have died in the violence and nearly 50,000 have been internally displaced.
A large section of general category Meiteis want to be included under the Scheduled Tribes category, while the Kukis who 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.
