Inclusion of Meitei churches among dismantled Kuki churches denounced
Source: Chronicle News Service
Imphal, June 11 2023:
Meitei Christian Churches Council Manipur (MCCCM) has denounced the inclusion of dismantled and burnt Meitei churches in the list of riot-de-stroyed Kuki churches in a writ petition filed by Manipur Tribal Forum Delhi (MTFD) in the Supreme Court.
Ma release, MCCCM expressed dismay that a draft copy it re-ceived of the Interlocutory Ap-plication of MTFD's Writ Peti-tion (No.540/2023) in the apex court India had some of 251 Meitei churches burnt or dismantled during the current communal violence in the list of Kuki churches.
MCCCM condemned the attempt to align the Meitei churches with the Kukis in the aforementioned writ petition, it added.
Appealing to the Forum to exclude the Meitei Churches from the petition, the council cautioned that the petitioner should be held responsible for any consequences that may arise from inclusion of Meitei churches without the consent of the indi-vidual churches.
MCCCM, a unified body rep-resenting the Meitei Churches of Manipur, asked the MTFD to remove all names of Meitei churches from the list of churches that it mentioned in the draft interlocutory petition to be filed before the Supreme Court in the next hearing.
The apex court is scheduled to hear the petition in the first week of July after the Court's summer vacation is over.
"We have received a draft copy of the interlocutory ap-plication (IA) of Manipur Tribal Forum Delhi's writ petition.
It has come to our attention that the Kukis have included 70 of the 251 Meetei Churches that were burnt and dismantled during the communal clashes two communities in the list of Kuki churches," MCCCM secretary general Senjam Kakanti said in a statement.
"We are dedicated to uphold-ing peace, unity and harmony among all communities and are committed to safeguarding the integrity of the state," he added.
Christian bodies in Manipur said that around 300 churches were burnt down during the communal violence between the two communities in Manipur.