Mind and fix the trust gap in Manipur

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

ethnic violence between Hindu Meiteis and Christian Kukis in Manipur. Yet, the N Biren Singh-led government has failed to restore peace. The unrest was sparked by a March 27 state court ruling that gave the majority Meiteis 'tribal status', giving them the same economic and quota benefits as the minority Kukis.

The decision was stayed by the Supreme Court. One of the key reasons for this violence has been the trust deficit between Kukis and the state government, with the former alleging Imphal instigating attacks against them. This is a grave charge.

Singh and his team have done little to bridge the gap. Earlier this month, Singh got into a Twitter clash with Kukis demanding his resignation by asking them whether they were from Myanmar. Kukis have close cultural ties with those living across the border.

There have been reports that while Myanmar's military junta is supporting Meiteis and the rebel fighters are supporting Kukis, the ethnic clashes are fuelled by an inflow of weapons from Myanmar into Manipur. This 'foreign hand' theory was strengthened last week when a video of Kuki men dressed in camouflage, seemingly prepared for combat, surfaced. While allegations must be investigated, the buck stops with elected representatives.

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court underlined this, asking GoI and the state government to protect all Manipuris and refused to accede to a request to direct the army on deployments in the state. It also asked the state to consider suggestions by the Zomi Students' Federation, an apex body for tribes of the Zomi nomenclature, for restoring peace, including appointing a judicial panel to probe the crisis. The state government must consider these suggestions with an open mind, and fix its house.