The Kangla Fort, located in urban Imphal, has been the centre of many social
discontentments among the Manipuris ever since its occupation by the British forces in
1891. Manipur’s independence in 1947 somehow did not seem to matter in the case of
the Kangla Fort, where there was only a change of guards. As the British left, Indian
troops moved in.
For about 2000 years, the Manipur Kings ruled from the Kangla Fort (which the British referred to as the Manipur
Fort). In Kangla, the history of Manipur is embedded. In Kangla, the socio-religious roots
of the Meeteis – the dominant group in the central Manipur valley – is traced.
In Kangla, the social identity of the Meeteis and the surrounding tribes is reflected.
It’s continued occupation by military
forces seem like a constant reminder of the power and dominance of authoritarian rule of
the Manipuri despots and of colonial administration, in these of days
‘democracy’. The Manipuris love and revere this place, but without the sense of
dominance.
The History
The recorded history of
Manipur begins with the coronation of the first known Meetei King, Nongda Lairen Pakhangba
in 33 A.D. The coronation ceremony was said to have conducted at the sacred Kangla and the
site is still known as the Kangla Men (An annual ritual worship is still performed here,
known as Kangla Men Tongba). Since, then, Kangla became the seat of power for Nongda
Lairen Pakhangba and his successors.
In 1892, taking advantage of the internecine
wars between the princes of the royal faamily, the British forces swept down on Manipur
and defeated the Manipuri forces. The Union Jack was hoisted inside the Kangla on 27 April
that year.
From that time onwards, till they left
Manipur in 1947, the British occupied the Kangla, declaring it and a major portion
of urban Imphal as the cantonment area or the ‘British Reserve’.
When the British left Manipur, The ownership
of the land comprising the Kangla Fort area was transferred to the Defense Ministry of the
Dominion of India. The Garhwal Rifles of the independent India replaced the British
troops, later, it was replaced by the 4th Assam Rifles. Ever since then, the
Assam Rifles have occupied Kangla.
The Background
Apart from being a seat of
power, Kangla is the nerve centre of Meetei cosmology and in fact, a miniature version of
the land of Meeteis and the surrounding tribes.
It is the very embodiment of the myths, the
State, the philosophy, the culture, the arts and literature, the cocept of design and
architecture all rolled together.
According to belief, there are as many as
108 sacred sites located inside the Kangla complex. Some of the most important ritual
worships for the Meeteis are observed here. In fact, for every auspicious day, people
visit the Kangla to seek the blessing of the deities there.
The entire fort area, measuring
approximately 236,84 acres, is directly under the Defense Ministry of India, represented
in the field by the Assam Rifles, a central para-military force.
Out of this total area, 36 acres handed over
to the Manipur Government in 1996, is presently manned by the Indian Reserve Battalion
(IRB), another centrally sponsored force.
Devotees and visitors have to obtain prior
permission from the Assam Rifles and the IRB office located inside the Kangla, to be
forwarded by the State Archaeology office, before entering the complex.
The entire Kangla Fort area is protected
under the Manipur Ancient and Historical Monument & Archaeological Sites & Remains
Act, 1976 and Rules 1979.
Besides, the Kangla complex was brought
within the ambit of the Imphal Capital Project of the State Planning and Development
Authority and the foundation stone for construction of the new Manipur Legislative
Assembly was laid at the Uttra site inside the Kangla in 1976.
The Turnabout
Then, the Manipur Government
negotiated for shifting of the 4th Assam Rifles from Kangla by providing a new
site at Matai Luwangsangbam, located around eight kilometers north from Imphal on the
National Highway No. 39 (Imphal-Dimapur highway).
The Assam Rifles authority came up with a
nine-point demand to the State Government, which included among others construction of two
approach roads, electricity and free water supply and rest house for the officers of Assam
Rifles stationed at Kangla.
The demands were fulfilled and the new site
was ready by 1986. However, the Assam Rifles authorities chose not to fulfil their
obligation and moved in another battalion (the 24th) at the new site while
replacing the 4th battalion with the 30th battalion at Kangla.
Years later, a new site was again provided
at Maha Koireng near Sanakeithel, a place on the National Highway No. 53 (Imphal Jiri
Highway).
In August 1992, the then Union Minister of
State for Home Affairs, M.M Jacob came down to Imphal, and as if to herald the final
departure of the paramilitary from the Kangla, he flagged off a column of the Assam Rifles
personnel stationed inside there.
The day was 13 August, a sacred day
remembered for the supreme sacrificed made by the brave sons of Manipur in defense of
their motherland in 1892.
The demonstration, however, was an eyewash.
It was a move initiated just to quell the discontentment over the continued military
occupation of the sacred place. The Assam Rifles column that left the Kangla in the
morning only returned by nightfall. This strengthens the people’s belief that the
Government of India had no plans to vacate this strategic and imposing position.
In 1996, a contoversy flared up when both
the Assam Rifles and the IRB sentries manning the southern Kangla gate barred officials of
the State Archaeological Office from carrying out survey work related to future
development of the Kangla complex.
In early 1997, a high level committee
meeting of representatives from the Central and the state Governments was hels at the
Manipur Bhavan in New Delhi to discuss the Kangla issue.
In the said meeting, the central Government
representatives informed the committee members that the Centre had positively fixed the
date of the complete vacation of the Assam Rifles from the Kangla on 1st July
2000.
However, the 1st of July 2000 has
come and gone. The Assam Rifles are still there at the Kangla. Reports said work progress
at the Maha Koireng site is unsatisfactory and the Assam Rifles have no intention to move
out of Kangla on the stipulated date.
Conclusion
For the Manipuri people, the Kangla
is not only a historical tressure but an embodiment of the social, cultural and religious
life of the people, also. The restoration of te Kangla to the people would relatively heal
the festering wound of military presence. Otherwise, it may be said that the social, the
cultural and the religious rights have in more than one way been deprived for the people
in Manipur
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