Imphal : More than 200 people belonging to the Meitei community have been evacuated from their villages in Manipur’s Jiribam district and moved to a newly set up relief camp after violence broke out following the killing of a man allegedly by militants, officials said Saturday.    

The houses of the people staying in the relief camp at Jiri Sports Complex were burnt in the outlying villages of Lamtai Khunou, Dibong Khunou, Nunkhal and Begra in the Jiribam district by suspected militants.    

Most of the newly displaced people were staying in villages more than 30 km from Jiribam town, an official said, adding “more security personnel have been rushed to the area.”

The Manipur police have ordered state police commando personnel based in Imphal Valley to proceed to Jiribam on Saturday for duty with immediate effect.

Tension erupted in ethnic strife-torn Manipur’s Jiribam district on Thursday evening after a 59-year-old man belonging to one community was killed allegedly by militants belonging to another, police said.

Also Read: Residents in Manipur’s Jiribam flee homes after man allegedly murdered by armed miscreants. The man, identified as Soibam Saratkumar Singh, went missing after he had gone to his farm in the morning. Later, his body was found, with wounds made by a sharp object, a police officer said.

Following the incident, irate locals set fire to an abandoned structure as retaliation, he said. Locals also staged a protest in front of Jiribam police station demanding that their licensed firearms taken from them in the wake of elections be returned to them after the completion of the polls.

Jiribam, which has a diverse ethnic composition comprising Meiteis, Muslims, Nagas, Kukis and non-Manipuris, had so far remained unaffected by the ethnic strife which has been raging in Manipur since May last year.

The ethnic conflict between Imphal Valley-based Meiteis and hills-based Kukis has led to the deaths of over 200 people and rendered thousands of people homeless.   The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) has condemned the ongoing violence in Jiribam, Manipur, criticizing the Government of India for its alleged negligence and mishandling of the crisis.

Jiribam, previously one of the few peaceful regions in Manipur where diverse communities including Thadou, Hmar, Paite, Kabui, Zeliangrong, Meetei Pangal, and Meetei lived harmoniously, has recently been engulfed in violence.

COCOMI attributes this surge in violence to provocative actions by immigrant groups, aimed at furthering their demands for separate administration through terror tactics. COCOMI asserts that alleged Narco-Terrorist groups are behind the recent abduction and murder of a Meetei individual. The victim was reportedly abducted and murdered in broad daylight by perpetrators led by Gousang from Phaitol Village, arriving in a Bolero vehicle with registration number AS 27 A 2905.

The committee has questioned the Indian government’s inaction in curbing the conflict, criticizing the Assam Rifles for firing live rounds at a protesting mob instead of apprehending the actual culprits. This response has raised serious concerns about the government’s commitment to protecting the lives and properties of its citizens.

Additionally, COCOMI condemned the preferential treatment of immigrant communities over indigenous populations and criticized the deployment of Indian security personnel focusing more on the Indo-Myanmar border rather than maintaining internal peace in Manipur.

COCOMI highlighted the recent arrest of members of an alleged Narco-Terrorist group at Imphal Airport, involved in transnational conspiracies, as reported by the National Investigation Agency (NIA). This, according to COCOMI, underscores the complex and disturbing nature of the conflict. The government’s inconsistent narrative, especially Home Minister Amit Shah’s shift from blaming illegal migrants to downplaying the violence as communal disharmony, has failed to address the root causes of the conflict.

COCOMI also expressed concern over reports suggesting that the Indian government, through entities like the Assam Rifles and the Maharashtra Regiment, supports armed militants in a proxy war against Manipur insurgents.

COCOMI has called on the Government of India to take immediate and sincere actions to resolve the crisis. The government must be held accountable for the losses and damages incurred over the past year and must cease using local conflicts for geopolitical gains. COCOMI extends its deepest condolences to the families of the victims, emphasizing that the sacrifices of those who lost their lives will not be forgotten. The indigenous people of Manipur must no longer be pawns in a larger geopolitical strategy.