RPF calls upon all to trust common cause
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, February 24 2026: The proscribed Revolutionary People's Front (RPF) has called upon the oppressed and exploited masses to repose their trust in the 'common cause' .

A statement issued by RPF president MM Ngouba on the occasion of the 47th foundation day of the outfit (February 25), also observed as Independence Demand Day, urged all the people to continue placing their confidence in the RPF .

Today, the RPF is not merely a liberation organisation resisting India's repression; it has evolved into a politically mature movement, capable of engaging responsibly and strategically in domestic, regional, and foreign affairs alike.

This capacity has been forged and sustained by the steadfast support of the people, it said.

"We therefore call upon all to further strengthen the RPF's struggle, extend cooperation, contribute according to your ability, and actively participate in consolidating the collective strength and unity of WESEA", read the statement.

Although the Constitution of India bears the words Secularism and Socialism, the rulers of India have not sincerely practised them.

Instead, in the name of caste hierarchy, in the name of the LPG (Liberalisation, Privatisation, Globalization) policy that enriches the wealthy, they have oppressed poor peasants and workers; in the name of religion, and religion as a weapon, they have committed crimes and pursued a duplicitous policy.

Such is the character of the Indian State, it alleged.

Because of the domineering posture of India, its policy toward South Asian countries is increasingly described as "a dual approach of partnership and domination" .

As a result, neighbouring countries are cautious of India's shadow and seek alternative paths beyond it.

While India wishes to project itself as the natural leader of South Asia, smaller neighbouring States do not accept the overbearing attitude of India as legitimate leadership, it said.

The statement issued by the RPF president remarked that regional policy frameworks of India - the "Neighbourhood First Policy", "The Gujral Doctrine" - have gradually lost credibility.

Even the "South Asia Satellite", rather than being received solely as an instrument of humanitarian and developmental cooperation, was widely perceived as a projection of India's political influence into the region.

In response to what many view as an increasingly assertive and domineering hegemon posture, South Asian States have sought to safeguard their strategic autonomy and diversify their external partnerships, Ngouba said.

The "India Out" movement in Maldives; Nepal's engagement with China and the ensuing Nepal-India border tensions; Sri Lanka's recalibration and balancing act; Bangladesh pursuing a multipolar foreign policy - all these developments reveal that India's hegemonic tendencies are no longer accepted unquestioningly, the RPF leader asserted.

South Asian countries now directly challenge India's attempt to function as the predominant power.

They increasingly engage with alternative platforms, such as China's BRI (Belt and Road Initiative) project.

The emergence of a so-called "China Friendly Axis" has further unsettled India, he said.

From a broader South Asian perspective, India's policy toward Myanmar is highly polarised - a two-track approach with a hard red line.

Both the Myanmar Government and Myanmar's revolutionary forces recognise this, according to the statement issued by MM Ngouba.

In November 2025, when the Chin National Front (CNF), the Arakan Army (AA), and the National Unity Government (NUG) were formally invited to participate in a seminar in Delhi, India reportedly withdrew the invitation without explanation after learning of Myanmar military leadership's visit to China.

In an apparent effort to prevent Myanmar from gravitating too closely toward Beijing, India has since sought to recalibrate its approach, attempting to appease and engage both the political and military leaderships of Myanmar, it said.

The Government of Myanmar regards India as a useful but not entirely trusted partner.

The resistance sees India as a "fair-weather friend" that talks to them only when there are risk, then abandons them when China pushes back, it said.

More broadly, India is often perceived within Myanmar as politically inconsistent and strategically unreliable (deep political distrust and fear): not a steadfast ally, but an opportunistic external actor - at times even a calculating and untrustworthy outsider.

Consequently, it is not only in Myanmar but across Southeast Asia that confidence in India's "Act East Policy" has visibly eroded, the outfit remarked.

For 47 years, the RPF has been waging a liberation struggle against India, it said.

"Despite the passage of time, India has failed to defeat us.

The RPF affirms that the just and genuine liberation struggle led by the people of Manipur cannot be extinguished by India", the outfit asserted.

India has deployed a wide array of repressive measures in its efforts to stifle the RPF's movement and dismantle its ideological foundations.

The 2023 Kuki-Meitei conflict, according to the RPF's assessment, was neither spontaneous nor incidental, but sponsored and engineered by the Indian Government, unleashing immense human suffering.

Indian National media intensified the crisis, amplifying the flames, read the statement.

By contrast, during the February 2026 incident in Litan, Ukhrul - when Kuki and Tangkhul homes were set ablaze - community leaders moved comparatively swiftly toward dialogue.

There was a conscious recognition of the alleged colonial logic of divide-and-rule and of the fundamental differences between the two crises, it remarked.

Even so, the Indian Army faced allegations of involvement in group violence.

The pattern is not incidental.

The fragmentation of communities and the systematic weakening of collective unity remain embedded in India's enduring strategic approach, it said.

Saying that India will continue to deploy divisive tactics to weaken the unity of WESEA and suppress the liberation movement, the RPF urged the people not to believe the propaganda disseminated by the Government of India and its alleged colonial media.

The covert agencies operating behind the scenes must be exposed, it said.

The RPF president also paid homage and respect to all the martyrs who have sacrificed their lives in the struggle for the freedom of Manipur and its people.

RPF also conveyed its greetings and fraternal solidarity to CorCom and all allied organisations that stand shoulder to shoulder in this shared struggle, as well as to every individual and collective dedicated to the cause of the Motherland and the liberation of the oppressed peoples of WESEA .

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