Litmus test for central forces as Kukis step up provocation
- The People's Chronicle Editorial :: August 03, 2023 -
OUTRIGHT objection raised by Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) and other Meetei organisations against the move made by the Kuki community to bury the dead at Torbung Bangla village, which falls under Bishnupur district on August 3, not only underscores the deep divide between the two communities in conflict but also validates charges levelled against the Kukis as provokers of the current feud.
As expected, COCOMI minced no words in branding even the deceased as Chin-Kuki narco-terrorists, as almost all these persons were either slain during attacks on Meetei villages or in counter-attacks launched by armed groups of Meetei volunteers.
As stated in a statement, COCOMI is vehemently against the plan to bury bodies of Chin-Kuki 'narco-terrorists' killed in the ongoing conflict at the Sericulture Office, Torbung Bangla but has no issue if bodies are laid to rest within the jurisdiction of Churachandpur district and not in any area falling under Bishnupur district.
For the record, the ethnic clash in Manipur broke out on May 3 after Kuki mob backed by armed cadres of Kuki outfits, which are bound by the suspension of operation agreement signed with the central and state governments, attacked Meetei villages with the same strategy adopted and enforced in Meetei settlement areas as the violence rages amid creation of the so-called buffer zone by central forces.
For almost three months since the ethnic clash, Meetei villages close to Kuki settlements have been under attacks with the obvious intention to clear these villages of the original settlers and grab the land for realisation of the area domination objective.
On its part, government forces have been conducting search operations to recover arms and ammunition looted from the police armouries.
However, such measures seem to be mainly confined to the valley districts if one takes into account that there had been numerous incidents of lawlessness in Kuki inhabited areas like destruction of government properties and bank robberies which both the state and central governments are unable to prevent or take action against perpetrators of such crimes.
A glaring example of showing leniency against the Kuki community was the release (on bail) of the accused persons in the Sapermeina buses torching case.
Interestingly, even charred remnants of the two vehicles engaged to transport RAF personnel have gone missing from the incident spot, thereby implying that law is being enforced only in the valley districts while the Kuki-populated areas have no government control.
With all respect to all those precious lives lost during the course of the ethnic violence, every mortal remains deserve controversy-free fitting tribute, religious rituals and burial or cremation unlike the fresh row kicked up over Kuki civil societies' move for interment of the bodies in a Meetei village falling under Bishnupur district.
Accepted that the said location has now been abandoned by the Meetei villagers, thanks to failure of the central forces to instil sense of insecurity and foil attacks carried out by Kuki militants, but it's an undeniable fact that Torbung Bangla village is a Meetei settlement area, which the Kuki civilians backed by well-armed groups are hell-bent to take over with the obvious objective to expand its foothold.
Thus, Thursday the planned mass burial day, will be litmus test for the central forces in maintaining status quo along the buffer zone as well as provide an opportunity to proof that they are here to facilitate return of peace in the state.
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