Delhi can no longer delay tough action against Kuki militants

Jaideep Mazumdar (Swarajya)
The bombings by Kuki militants have further complicated an already-volatile situation in Manipur. Meiteis believe—and that perception seems to be true—that the Union Government is mollycoddling Kuki militants.
The volatile situation in Manipur is taking a turn for the worse, thanks to the indecisiveness of the Union Government, which has inexplicably stepped back from taking decisive action against Kuki militants.
Kuki militants, their ranks and armouries reinforced by battle-hardened cadres from conflict-torn Myanmar, have escalated their attacks on Meiteis through the use of sophisticated arms and tactics.
After attacking Meitei villages and even India Reserve Battalion (IRB) defences in Imphal West district, Kuki militants have used improvised long-range launchers to fire rockets at the residence of Manipur’s first Chief Minister, Mairenbam Koireng, at Moirang in Bishnupur district Friday afternoon (6 September).
The bombing left an elderly person dead and several injured. The residence of the former CM is just about 2 kilometres (km) away from the historic Indian National Army (INA) War Museum in Moirang.
Kuki militants also fired rockets from elevated posts in the hills of Churachandpur district at Tronglaobi, a Meitei village about 45 km from State capital Imphal.
Top State police officials told Swarajya over the phone from Imphal that the use of high, fast-flying drones to drop bombs and grenades on targets had added a new and dangerous dimension to the ethnic conflict in the State.
“It is very obvious that the Kuki militants have got these drones and the expertise in flying them from Myanmar or even other countries. Drones are being used extensively by ethnic armed organisations (EAOs) in Myanmar against the armed forces of that country,” an Inspector General (IGP) of Manipur police told Swarajya.
The police are also alarmed over the use of improvised long-range launchers to fire rockets at distant targets. The bombs that landed at the former CM’s residence are believed to have been fired from over 5 km away.
“Kuki militants who fired those rockets from long-range launchers obviously got training from somewhere. They also got training in making those launchers and bombs. That level of expertise is quite sophisticated since it involves calculating the trajectory of the fired explosive, wind speed, and other factors. They have been receiving training over the past few months, and we suspect it is from Kuki-Chin outfits in Myanmar,” said the police officer.
The bombings by Kuki militants have further complicated the situation in the State. Meiteis believe — and that perception seems to be true — that the Union Government is mollycoddling Kuki militants.
It is widely perceived that Assam Rifles had provided training and shelter to Kuki militant outfits to use them against Naga and Meitei militants.
That is why Meiteis have been demanding the removal of Assam Rifles from the Kuki-dominated areas in the hill districts. This demand was partially met when two Assam Rifles battalions were pulled out and redeployed outside the State and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) posted in their place in early-August.
But that has not changed the situation on the ground, and the perception that the Central forces, including the army, are not taking strong action against Kuki militants has only strengthened in recent weeks.
Despite plenty of evidence that Kuki militants possess sophisticated weapons and have received arms and training from their sister outfits in Myanmar, Central security forces have not launched a crackdown on them.
Manipur police, on the other hand, is being restrained from launching operations against Kuki militants in the hills who are carrying out attacks on Meiteis.
The fierce anger among Meiteis against the refusal of the Central forces to act against Kuki militants has led the apex body of the Meiteis—the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI)—to de- clare a ‘public emergency’ across five districts of Im-phal Valley that is inhabited predominantly by Meiteis.
The COCOMI also issued a statement Friday, stating that “the Government cannot be further trusted to protect the lives of people, and the public must decide its own way to protect themselves.”
Hours after this statement, angry mobs attempted to loot the armoury of the Second Manipur Rifles battalion. Police had to fire tear gas shells and live rounds to thwart the attempted loot.
“There is widespread anger among Meiteis, and this will inevitably result in more violence. The anger is against the Central security forces and the Union Government for inaction against Kuki militant outfits,” said a senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) politician who is also a Cabinet Minister.
Security experts say it is only a matter of time before the Union Government’s mollycoddling of Kuki militants backfires.
“Very soon, the Kuki militants will start targeting the State police and then the Central security forces. And given the fact that they have built up an impressive armoury with sophisticated weapons (many of Chinese make) and have received training in guerilla warfare as well as the use of the sophisticated arms from the battle-hardened Kuki-Chin outfits in Myanmar, they will be difficult to suppress,” said a retired army Colonel, a Meitei, who has settled down in Imphal.
Army sources acknowledge this reality but plead helplessness in the face of clear-cut directives from New Delhi to go all out against the Kuki militants.
“It is a dangerous situation, and the longer we put off a full-scale offensive against the (Kuki) militants, the stronger they will become,” said an army officer posted at the army’s 57 Mountain Division headquarters at Leimakhong, about 30 km west of Imphal city.
The growing boldness of the Kuki militants, who are backed by Kuki civil society organisations, and the inaction of Central security forces, who refuse to take action against them, is pushing Manipur to the brink once again.
The COCOMI’s call to Meiteis to arrange for their own protection due to the failure of the security forces to protect them has added another dangerous dimension. This is being interpreted as a call to Meitei civilians to arm themselves.
“The situation is turning more volatile. Kuki militants are getting bolder and brazen and have gained the strength now to attack any village or installation at their will and to cleanse the hills of all Meiteis. Meiteis, on the other hand, are justifiably angry, and we will definitely witness a resurgence of the (Imphal) Valley-based militant outfits,” said the retired army officer.
If these predictions come true, Manipur will go over the brink. This can only have very grave security implications for India.