TIM to attend Assam State Hun Thadou Cultural Festival
- 30th March 2025 :: Thadou Inpi Manipur -

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Thadou Inpi Manipur (TIM) expresses heartfelt gratitude to the organizing committee of the Assam State Hun Thadou Cultural Festival, 2025 for the warm invitation and congratulates them on this historic event. A delegation of TIM office bearers will attend the festival, scheduled to be held on April 4, 2025, at Guwahati, Assam. This festival presents a valuable platform to strengthen unity among various Manipuri communities living in Assam and celebrate our shared cultural heritage at this crucial time.

TIM is deeply concerned about the stiff opposition to Thadou cultural identity by self-proclaimed Assam-based Suspension of Operations (SoO) Kuki militant groups, suspected of having links with Manipur’s SoO groups.

We call on authorities to investigate their nexus, particularly the Kuki Revolutionary Army (KRA), Kuki Liberation Army (KLA) under the Kuki National Organization (KNO), and the United Kuki Defense Army (UKDA), which is believed to be a creation of the Kuki National Front (KNF).

The attack on different Thadou cultural troupes performers from Dima Hasao by Kuki militants and the opposition to the Thadou Hun Festival by both Kuki SoO militant groups and Kuki Inpi Assam are blatant acts of persecution against Thadou leaders in Assam. TIM demands immediate government intervention and peeved of government inaction so far.

It is important to note that Kuki and Thadou are separately recognized in the Scheduled Tribe (ST) lists of both Assam and Manipur. The continuous persecution, cultural suppression, and religious restrictions imposed by Kukis against the Thadou people must stop. The painful memory of the 1992 Kuki-Thadou conflict, which led to the killing of many Thadou people, remains unforgotten. Any attempt to erase or appropriate Thadou identity will be met with firm resistance.

TIM stands in full solidarity with Thadou Inpi Assam (TIA) in the face of ongoing persecution by Kuki supremacists and extremists. We urge all communities, both in India and globally, to stand against threats to cultural identity, religious freedom, and human dignity.

Statement: “Thadou is a distinct ethnic group of people. Thadou is not Kuki, or underneath Kuki, or part of Kuki, but a separate, independent entity from Kuki. Any organization that incorporates “Thadou” but espouses Kuki and mis-portrays Thadou as Kuki or a part of Kuki is illegitimate and does not represent Thadou people and interest” – Thadou Convention 2024.

(Manggou Thadou)
Joint General Secretary
Thadou Inpi Manipur (TIM)