This story first appeared in Hindustan Times
Manipur has had a long history of ethnic feuds. I personally witnessed one in 1997, but sense prevailed, and peace reigned. But this time, things are different
Manipur saw one of its darkest and longest nights on May 4. The delicate balance between the people of the hills and those from the plains was disturbed once more. It is unfortunate. Manipur was taking small but significant steps towards progress as the shadow of our violent past was dissipating. But we have now taken a giant step back.
By all accounts, the anger was simmering. It all started when on April 19, the Manipur high court (HC) issued directions to the Bharatiya Janata Party-led state government to submit recommendations to the Centre to consider the inclusion of the Meiteis in the Scheduled Tribes (ST) list and consider the case within the next four weeks. The Meiteis are the dominant community in Manipur. They have embraced Vaishnavism and in many circles are considered Brahmins. The tribal groups, categorised as ST, protested the high court order, given that the Meitei already come under the other backward classes (OBC) category. The hill tribes believe the safeguards they enjoy under this ST categorisation will be voided once the dominant Meiteis are brought under the same umbrella. I am told that Meiteis were initially divided about the demand to be included in the ST category, with a section believing that they have the wherewithal to manage without State support.
Then came the state’s decision to earmark forests, which the tribes have always accessed for food, into reserved and protected forests, allegedly without the consent of the hill tribals. While the state claims that some people are encroaching on reserved and protected forests, the hill tribes say they have always inhabited these forests, even before the formal creation of the Manipur state. The tribal chiefs and human rights organisations challenged the state’s declaration, saying they are indigenous to the hills, which were only put together as part of Manipur by the British. The hill tribes are the first stakeholders and should have been made to understand the implications of the forests being declared reserved and protected.
Manipur has had a long history of ethnic feuds. I personally witnessed one in 1997 when two warring groups of the Kuki and Paite communities fought a brutal war. Good sense prevailed, and peace eventually reigned. But this time, the vandalism of multiple places of worship and the loot that followed soon after homes were targeted and burnt down, is new, especially in Imphal.
moved on from those dark days. Of late, the state capital was showing signs and promise that it has The capital’s Night Plaza was opened in 2017, where people could walk the street free of fear. With good music, food and shops, the plaza lured people into believing that peace had indeed returned.
Yet this week’s turn of events tells another story. Angry mobs from both sides of the divide threaten to outnumber the forces. My own family was rendered homeless overnight. Manipur is burning, and we have just stepped back into darkness.