Early in the morning of June 10, 2024, a police convoy was ambushed by suspected Kuki militants in Manipur, marking a significant escalation in the region’s ongoing ethnic conflict. The attack, which resulted in the injury of one police officer, occurred just before the scheduled visit of the Chief minister of Manipur, N. Biren Singh, to the tense district of Jiribam. 

The convoy was targeted along National Highway 37, a critical route connecting Imphal and Jiribam, near T Laijang village within the Kuki-Zomi dominated Kangpokpi district. The injured officer, Moirangthem Ajesh, sustained a bullet wound to his right shoulder and is currently receiving treatment in Imphal. 

Back in April, two CRPF personnel were killed by Kuki militants. 

Jiribam, bordering Assam’s Cachar district, is an ethnically diverse land that includes the Meiteis, Kuki-Zos, Bengalis, Muslims and the Nagas. This district had been relatively peaceful, in comparison to some of the worse-affected parts of Manipur, until the discovery of Soibam Saratkumar Singh’s body on May 6, which sparked a series of arson attacks and the burning of homes belonging to the Hmar-Mizos and the Meitieis. The unrest has led to the displacement of hundreds, within which many seek refuge in temporary relief camps. 

CM Singh’s visit aims to address the unrest and reinforce the government’s commitment to maintaining order. A joint team of state forces and Assam Rifles has been deployed to conduct search operations in the aftermath of the ambush. 

The conflict in between the Meitei people and the Kuki-Zo tribe escalated in May last year but the its roots were sown in the ‘divide-and-rule’ policies of the British colonial administration. The British government drew arbitrary boundaries and recognised certain territories as exclusive to particular tribes, which laid the groundwork for future conflicts. 

Post independence, the areas of governance inhabited by these communities overlapped and this resulted in violent standoffs, with villages being torched and civilians killed. The Kuki community demand for a separate Kuki-administrative land has emerged from the distaste of the Meitei-dominated state government. Alongside this, crackdowns on the drug cultivation and eviction drives against illegal migrants has also fuelled protests in Kuki-dominated districts. 

The recent violence, however, has been triggered by the Manipur High Court’s directive to the state government to submit its recommendation on the inclusion of the Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribe list, which sparked fears among the Kuki-Zomi that their land and job opportunities would be threatened by a potential competition from the Meitei community. 

Alongside this, another terror attack struck J&K’s Reasi yesterday when a bus carrying Hindu Pilgrims was attacked by gunfire and resulted in the bus losing control and falling into a gorge. At least ten were killed in this attack and around 30 were injured.