Shutdown in Manipur hill districts hits life for second day

Normal life remained affected in a few hill districts in Manipur, including Churachandpur and Kangpokpi, for the second day on Saturday amid the shutdown called by a few tribal organisations, anticipating an attack on Kuki-Zo tribals, officials said.

An official said that shops, markets and various commercial establishments remained shut, while vehicles excluding those of security forces and emergency services remained off the roads. However, No untoward incident has been reported so far.

The shutdown began in the two districts on Friday and would continue till Sunday.

The shutdown was called earlier this week by various organisations of Kuki-Zo communities, including the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF), Kuki Inpi Sadar Hills, and Kuki Students Organisation (KSO), in protest against the Manipur government’s Security Advisor Kuldiep Singh’s claim on September 20 that 900 Kuki militants after being infiltrated from Myanmar might carry out violence in peripheral villages of valley districts.

However, in a joint statement signed by Manipur’s Director General of Police Rajiv Singh and Security Advisor Singh on Wednesday late night (September 25), the claim was retracted and they asserted that the likelihood of "any such misadventures by armed groups is minimal and unsubstantiated".

"The reports of infiltration of 900 trained Kuki militants from Myanmar to carry out attacks in Manipur in the state on September 28, could not be substantiated on the ground," the joint statement had said.

Kuldiep Singh, a former Director General of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), had told the media on September 20 that the security forces are treating this "alarming development with utmost seriousness, implementing necessary precautionary measures to counter potential threats". He had said that Assam Rifles and Central Armed Police Force, including the Border Security Force, have been placed on high alert in districts bordering Myanmar, such as Kamjong, Tengnoupal, Pherzawl, and Churachandpur.

On September 25, predicting attacks on Kuki-Zo tribals in Manipur, various tribal organisations, including ITLF, asked people not to travel outside Kuki-Zo-dominated areas between September 26 and 29. After an emergency meeting, the ITLF had announced the closure of borders (between the Kuki-Zo community and Meitei inhabited areas) from September 26 to 29, closure of schools, institutions and offices from September 27 to 29 in the areas inhabited by tribals belonging to Kuki-Zo community. The tribal organisations had also directed all village volunteers and citizens to be on high alert during these days.