Manipur: Scheduled Tribe Demand Committee challenges CM Biren Singh's statement on crisis cause

The Scheduled Tribe Demand Committee of Manipur (STDCM) has refuted Chief Minister N. Biren Singh's statement made during the Budget Session of the Manipur Assembly on August 1, 2024. 

The Chief Minister had stated that the root cause of the current violent crisis in the state was the Manipur High Court's order on March 27, 2023, regarding the indigenous Meitei/Meetei Tribe's ST status demand. 

In a release K Bhogendrahit, general secretary mentioned that the STDCM stated that the Chief Minister had previously identified other factors such as infiltration by illegal immigrants, eviction of encroachment on Reserved and Protected forests, and a war on drugs as the root causes of the crisis. 

The violent crisis began on 3rd May 2023, the day the All Tribal Students' Union, Manipur (ATSUM) organised a Peace Tribal Solidarity March in protest against the High Court's order. 

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However, the STDCM noted that the violence was confined to areas dominated by the Kuki and allied tribes, such as Churachandpur, Moreh, and Kangpokpi. They argued that if the Meitei/Meetei's ST status demand was the root cause, violence would have occurred in other areas inhabited by non-Kuki tribes as well. 

"...quite evident from the ground and media reports that the violent incidents broke out only in some areas dominated by the Kuki and allied tribes, particularly in Churachandpur, Moreh and Kangpokpi. Had the demand for Meitei/Meetei's ST status been the root cause of the current violent crisis it should also have occurred in other areas dominantly inhabited by the Non-Kuki tribes of the State," mentioned the release.

The STDCM urged the Chief Minister to retract his statement, warning that it could mislead the public and endorse misinformation campaigns. They stressed that misinformation and fake news have been circulating in the media, including social media, during the past 15 months of the crisis. 

The STDCM, on behalf of the indigenous Meitei/Meetei tribe, called for a retraction to prevent the narrative from being diverted by a particular group with a hidden agenda.