Manipur Violence: Centre Eyes Peace Talks; Meets Kuki, Meitei Leaders

In a bid to restore peace in ethnic-clashes hit restive Manipur, Centre on Wednesday held talks with representatives of Kuki groups while a separate round of talks was also held with representatives of the Meitei community's civil society Coordinating Committee for Manipur Integrity (COCOMI).

As per media reports, under Suspension of Operation (SoO) agreement with the government, former additional director with the Intelligence Bureau Akshay Mishra had a meeting with representatives of Kuki militant groups.

Meanwhile, the Meitei civil society COCOMI had on Tuesday urged the Centre not to hold talks with Kuki militant groups claiming that members of those bodies are responsible for the current turmoil in the state.

Before the fresh round of ethnic clashes hit the state in May, talks with SoO groups had been going on for the past several months and a Kuki peace deal had even been nearly finalised. 

Sources said while the talks before the May violence were focused on finding a political solution to the issue of tribal self-determination, the current series of talks is largely focused on finding ways to end the ongoing violence in the state.

The Home Ministry is also in constant touch with Manipur CM N Biren Singh to find a solution on the Meitei side.

However, any solution on the political front to mitigate the ethnic tension in the state is yet to be achieved.

.“While Kukis are adamant on a separate administration having lost all trust in the current Manipur government, the CM is rooting for status quo ante. At the moment, none of these solutions are workable. Granting separate administration to Kukis will rile up Meiteis given the current situation. Kukis will not accept the status quo ante. Only after the violence ebbs, perhaps, the two sides will be able to hear each other,” a key political leader engaged in talks said, as per a report by The India Express