Total shutdown affects normal life in Manipur’s Churachandpur district

Normal life came to a standstill in Manipur’s Churachandpur district on Friday after two tribal organisations enforced a “total shutdown” across the Kuki-Zo–dominated region to protest the participation of a legislator from the community in the ongoing process of government formation, officials said.

Bandh supporters were seen early in the morning stopping vehicles at several locations in and around the district headquarters town, some carrying sticks to enforce the shutdown. Markets remained closed, roads wore a deserted look, and attendance in educational institutions and government offices was thin, officials added.

The Churachandpur unit of the Kuki Students Organisation (KSO) called a 24-hour shutdown from midnight on Friday, while another group, the Joint Forum of Seven (JF7), enforced a shutdown in Kuki-Zo areas from 6 am to 6 pm. The impact of the bandh was most pronounced in the Tuibong area of the district headquarters.

With tensions running high, additional security forces were deployed at sensitive locations across Churachandpur town to maintain law and order, officials said.

Adding to the protests, the Kuki Women Organisation for Human Rights (KWOHR) announced a mass public rally on Friday afternoon, voicing strong opposition to the participation of Kuki-Zo MLAs in the formation of the state government under the current circumstances. The organisation said the rally would reflect the collective stand of Kuki women against political developments they deem unacceptable.

Tensions had already flared on Thursday evening, when clashes erupted between a mob and security forces near the Tuibong forest gate. Security personnel resorted to a baton charge and fired tear gas shells to disperse the crowd after protesters allegedly pelted stones. The confrontation continued until around 3 am on Friday, leaving two demonstrators injured, officials said.

Meanwhile, the Indigenous Tribes Advocacy Committee representing Pherzawl and Jiribam districts issued a warning against any attempt to intimidate, threaten or harm MLA N Sanate, or damage his property. Such acts, the committee said, would be seen as a deliberate insult to the collective will of the tribal people of the two districts.

The committee also urged restraint, stressing that recent political developments should not sow discord among the Hmar, Kuki and Zomi tribes, whose interests it said the body supports.

The tensions follow the visit of MLA N. Sanate and MLA L.M. Khaute to Imphal on Wednesday, where they joined the NDA delegation that staked claim to form the government. The two Kuki-Zo-Hmar legislators, along with deputy chief minister Nemcha Kipgen, also participated virtually in the seventh session of the 12th Manipur Legislative Assembly on Thursday.

With PTI inputs