On February 22, a room on the third floor of Manipur Bhavan in New Delhi witnessed a meeting that would have been routine in any other state. But for Manipur, it was anything but routine.
It had been two weeks after the chief minister and two deputy chief ministers took charge of Manipur. But the three met for the first time, in person, under one roof, after taking over, in the national capital that day –– an event made impossible in state capital Imphal by the sharp ethnic divisions that continue to roil Manipur.
The meeting –– where chief minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh, a Meitei, and his two deputies, Losii Dikho, a Naga, and Nemcha Kipgen, a Kuki-Zo discussed the way forward for the strife-torn state –– is only one of the signs of the uphill challenge facing the new government in bringing back normalcy to a province that’s virtually been cleaved into ethnic enclaves.
Kipgen, who couldn’t travel to Imphal to take oath alongside her cabinet colleagues on February 5 and was virtually sworn in from Manipur Bhawan in Delhi, has still not managed to establish an office in the state capital, said senior government officials in Imphal.
{{/usCountry}}Kipgen, who couldn’t travel to Imphal to take oath alongside her cabinet colleagues on February 5 and was virtually sworn in from Manipur Bhawan in Delhi, has still not managed to establish an office in the state capital, said senior government officials in Imphal.
{{/usCountry}}Instead, Kipgen –– whose appointment also set off violent protests among Kuki-Zo communities –– is attending official meetings from the deputy commissioner’s office and her house in the hill district of Kangpokpi, officials said.
The Meiteis live in the valley and dominate Imphal, and the Kuki-Zo communities populate the hill districts, with security personnel and armed local militia guarding the so-called buffer zones.
“Deputy CM Kipgen has been attending meetings from the deputy commissioner’s office in Kangpokpi because she is yet to travel to Imphal. The district administration arranges the video conferencing facility. She has been meeting the CM and her cabinet colleagues over VC almost every day,” an officer aware of the matter said.
The official added that for now, she has been allotted a room in the Sadar Hills Autonomous Council building in the Kangpokpi town area as her new office.
She is not the only one.
CM Singh is also yet to visit the hills, dominated by the Kuki-Zos, said officials in Churachandpur. On February 19, Singh met Kuki-Zo victims of the ethnic clashes from the hill district of Churachandpur, but only virtually.
Officials cited above described this as a good start because the Kuki-Zo communities refused to acknowledge former CM Biren Singh after clashes broke out in May 2023.
”At least this is a positive start. The Kuki-Zo victims were willing to speak to Khemchand, even if over VC, and acknowledge him as the state CM. This is something, which was not happening before. Maybe they cannot travel to Churachandpur or Kangpokpi immediately but at least they are in touch virtually and welcoming someone who is trying to restore normalcy,” said a second official.
The official added that when Kipgen returned to Kangpokpi town from Delhi, she didn’t take a flight to Imphal and instead flew down to Dimapur in neighbouring Nagaland and then arrived by road.
Dimapur is almost 6-7 hours from Kangpokpi while Imphal is just an hour’s drive, but the road between Kangpokpi and Dimapur does not include any Meitei areas.
The second officer described Singh’s recent visit to Jiribam, near the Manipur-Assam border, as a small victory. Meitei and Kuki people live in the same district there, though in different areas.
“The new CM could visit Jiribam and interact with the Hmar community people. This was not possible before. Militant groups attacked Biren Singh’s convoy at this location while it was travelling to the Jiribam highway for his security preparation. He could never visit Jiribam after that,” the second officer said.
Only deputy CM Dikho has managed to visit both Imphal and Churachandpur –– on February 14, 20 and March 2. That’s because the community he hails from, the Nagas, have long been considered neutral in the ethnic clashes between the Meiteis and Kukis.
“I have visited Churachandpur and Kangpokpi so far. People have been welcoming, which is a positive sign. The CM has virtually met the Kuki-Zo internally displaced people too. The feedback was good. The government is working to restore normalcy. Everyone is working to bring peace back to the state,” said Dikho.
Singh and Kipgen were not available for comment.
A third official, who asked not to be named, said the next two weeks are extremely important for the state where 260 people died and another 60,000 displaced over the past two years.
“The Manipur assembly session is starting on Monday. It is possible that deputy CM Kipgen will come to Imphal to attend the session physically. It will go on for at least a week. We will have to work out the security arrangements. After the assembly session, the CM might visit the hill districts starting with Kangpokpi and then Churachandpur. If that happens and if the locals allow it, then it will be a step forward towards normalcy,” the third officer added.