In Manipur, several steps have been taken by the Central Government in recent days to restore peace. The talks are continuing after President's rule was imposed in the state. After 13 talks between the Meitei and Kuki communities, the Ministry of Home Affairs has held important talks. A lot of efforts are being made to find a solution to the conflict between the two communities that began in May 2023 and to restore peace and normalcy. Home Minister Amit Shah himself is monitoring the situation in Manipur. Nearly 260 people have lost their lives and thousands had to flee their homes after ethnic violence erupted between the Meitei and Kuki communities. Two days ago, the Kuki leadership, based in Manipur's Kangpokpi district, had put forward three conditions for talks. Restrictions should be imposed on each other's movement in areas dominated by Meitei and Kuki communities. Implement a ceasefire for at least six months for peace talks. During this ceasefire, a formal and substantive dialogue process should be initiated. At present, it is not clear whether the central government has accepted these conditions or not.
The gulf between the two communities in Manipur has widened so much that now both communities are avoiding visiting each other's areas. There is a strange silence in the relief camps. The fire seed of violence is so old that even today the government and society have not been able to find a solution to it. Why have the situation reached a dangerous point? The Kuki community says they were discriminated against by the Meitei-dominated state administration. The demand for a separate administrative region for hilly areas is very old. A democratic, non-partisan and focused approach could have already put Manipur back on the path of peace, but efforts have not been made so far. The state government also resorted to security forces to resolve issues between two fraternal people of the same state. When the decision to give reservation to the Meitei community was taken, resentment erupted in the Kuki community. Gradually, the violence engulfed the entire state and the situation went out of control.
Some sections of the Kuki community had seen the BJP government's forest clearance drive as an attempt to target them and there were concerns over a new court order suggesting that the Meiteis' demand for ST status — a long-standing feud between tribals and the majority community — should be considered. Trouble had been brewing since 2015, when the previous state government led by Meitei had approved three laws that were seen in favour of the Meitei. What this didn't help was the current chief minister's anti-tribal image, bolstered by several comments about "outsiders" that some saw as a warning to the Kuki people. So when the Kuki BJP MLA invited the CM to the inauguration ceremony in Churachandpur on April 27, tensions escalated. The protesters first set fire to a gym, which was part of the sports complex that was to be inaugurated. Hours after the Swadeshi Adivasi Neta Manch, a tribal student organisation led by Kuki leaders, called for a bandh in the district, the protesters again vandalised the venue the next day.
After this, the fire of violence started. "The core conundrum in Manipur—the trust deficit between communities and between some communities and the administration has not been addressed by the state government. It cannot be solved with a secure approach, as has become clear in the last 2 years. This requires a political process that listens to the concerns of all parties with sensitivity and leaders who are trusted by every community and requires a clear and transparent process of accountability where every victim of violence gets their time in court and fair justice. A wounded state needs balm, not force and political posturing. "
Now, the security forces are cracking down on banned organisations. The looted weapons are being recovered. What is needed is to restore trust between the two communities. For this, the people living in relief camps should be rehabilitated and a political solution should be found to satisfy both the communities.