'Manipur crisis is political, not a security issue': Kuki-Zo women's forum seeks President's Rule

The forum alleges that 32 Kuki-Zo people have been killed since the formation of the new government and demands a separate Union Territory with a legislature

The Kuki-Zo Women's Forum on Wednesday demanded the reimposition of President's Rule in Manipur, arguing that the state's crisis is political and cannot be resolved merely by deploying additional security forces.

At a press conference in New Delhi, the forum also called for a separate administration for the Kuki-Zo people in the form of a Union Territory with a legislature, saying the arrangement was essential for the community's survival.

"Our political demand is not merely a political demand. It is a question of our survival. We want to survive," Ginza Vualzong, a spokesperson for the Kuki-Zo Council, said.

Ginza said the Centre had been treating the situation as a security problem by deploying large numbers of security personnel, but that this approach had failed to resolve the crisis over the past three years. The spokesperson urged the government to expedite political dialogue.

The forum claimed that Kuki-Zo civilians felt safer under President's Rule and alleged that 32 members of the community had been killed since the formation of the new government in Manipur.

"During the President's Rule, we did not lose any lives in violence," Ginza said, calling for its reimposition.

The spokesperson said the community was not seeking separation from India but wanted a constitutional arrangement that would allow its people to live with safety and dignity.

.Grave indictment of BJP's failure: Congress on Manipur violence. The forum also called for an investigation into attacks attributed to the National Socialist Council of Nagalim-Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM), including possible violations of the ceasefire agreement with the group. It demanded accountability wherever violations were established.

It sought ex gratia compensation for the families of the 32 people it said had been killed, as well as for those whose houses had been burned down.

The forum alleged that vulnerable Kuki-Zo villages, including Thawai Kuki, Mullam, Songphel, Loibol, Kultuh, N Teikhang and Chassad, had faced repeated armed attacks and arson. It said Chassad village in Kamjong district had suffered repeated incidents of arson, and that an attack on 17 October killed Seikhohao Haokip.

The group also demanded protection for Kuki-Zo villages, access to essential medical services and commodities, an end to what it described as "selective" National Investigation Agency operations against civilians, and accountability for alleged atrocities dating back to the 1990s.

The press conference was held under the theme "Stop the ambushes. Stop the killings. Protect Kuki-Zo civilians".