Imphal, Sept 11: Six valley-based insurgent groups in Manipur have called for a boycott of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s upcoming visit to the state on September 13, even as Kuki organisations have welcomed it as a “rare and historic occasion.”
The Coordination Committee (CorCom), an umbrella body of six insurgent outfits including the Kangleipak Communist Party (KCP), KYKL, PREPAK, and factions of UNLF and RPF-PLA, announced a “total shutdown” from 1 am until Modi’s departure. CorCom accused the Centre of fueling the ongoing conflict between Meiteis and Kukis since May 2023 and attempting to “transform Manipur into a region dominated by mainland Indian populations.”
In contrast, the Kuki-Zo Council (KZC) has extended a “warm welcome” to Modi, reiterating its demand for a separate administration. Calling the visit the first by a Prime Minister in nearly four decades, the Council described it as “historic” and stressed the community’s suffering since last year’s ethnic violence, which has claimed more than 250 lives.
The Prime Minister is expected to begin his tour in Churachandpur before addressing a gathering in Imphal at Kangla Fort. He is also likely to meet displaced victims of the conflict, though not at relief camps due to security and logistical constraints.
