The main stumbling block to peaceful election
- The People's Chronicle Editorial :: March 19, 2024 -

THE latest incident of attack by armed Kuki-Chin militants on a group of sand miners belonging to the Meetei community at the foothills of Keihao village under Maphou Dam police station in Imphal East district on Sunday (March 17) is a stark reminder of the unfortunate fact that the ethnic conflict that broke out on May 3 last year is far from over.

Even though political parties and their leaders in Manipur may have already started canvassing for the elections to the 18th Lok Sabha as if peace and normalcy had been restored in the state, it's a given that the armed Kuki-Chin militants are not going to remain quiet from indulging in disrupting activities to keep the pot boiling.

There may be a brief period of lull in between such unprovoked firings and attacks on innocent civilians, who have nothing to do with the ongoing conflict and are only trying to eke out their livelihood; but to think it as armed Kuki-Chin militants relinquishing their stand and position would a great blunder.

With their, hidden agenda behind raising the demand for a separate administration exposed now and all the efforts of internationalising the conflict as well as trying to portray the people of Kuki-Chin community as the victim of a "systematic ethnic cleansing" carried out by the majority Meetei community coming to naught, armed Kuki-Chin militants have nothing more to lose from continuing to unleash violence regardless of who their target is.

In fact, it is now going to be in their own interest to not only keep the pot boiling but also ruffle the feathers of other communities who have remained neutral to the conflict, and the machinations to accomplish this morally repugnant objective are visible everywhere today.

It's no wonder, Keihao Village Authority has issued yet another press statement denouncing the conduct of armed Kuki-Chin militants who sneaked into the territory of the village inhabited by Tangkhul Naga community for launching attacks on the Meetei once again.

After many empty cases of automatic rifles were found during a drive conducted on January 22 last, the headman of Keihao village had issued a statement through the media appealing to all concerned to refrain from indulging any gunfights within the territory of the village to avoid any untoward incident and misunderstanding in future.

The village headman had also made it clear that Tangkhul Naga community has remained as a neutral community ever since the outbreak of the violence in the state and so such incidents of gunfight within the territory of the village would not be tolerated in future.

The fact that Keihao Village Authority had been compelled to issue another statement soon after the incident of attack on a group of sand miners on Sunday is a clear indication of armed Kuki-Chin militants wilfully ignoring the appeal made by the village headman.

By deliberately ignoring the appeal, Kuki-Chin militants are pushing for their ulterior motive of not only causing misunderstanding between the Meetei and the Tangkhul but also drag in "neutral communities" to take side and join in the ongoing conflict so as to prolong it.

This mindset of the Kuki-Chin militants to ignite communal tension and create chaos in a multi-pluralistic society should not be overlooked by anyone, especially the political parties and their leaders in Manipur who seem to have started living under the impression that cacophonies of canvassing for the 18th Lok Sabha elections would be able to drown out the sound of guns fired and bombs exploded by Kuki-Chin militants.

Let's not forget that the Suspension of Operations (SoO) signed by the government with over a dozen Kuki-Chin militant groups is yet to be abrogated, even if the agreement has not been extended after expiry of its term on February 29 last.

As long as this agreement, which gives a leeway to the Kuki-Chin militants, remains; all efforts for ensuring peaceful conduct of elections in Manipur would come to naught.