Meitei, Kuki, Naga MLAs to meet in Delhi for Manipur peace talks today

In an effort to restore peace in strife-torn Manipur, MLAs belonging to Meitei, Kuki and Naga communities are meeting here on Tuesday for the first time since ethnic violence broke out in the state 17 months ago, sources said.

The meeting has been called by the Ministry of Home Affairs in an attempt to iron out differences between Meitei and Kuki communities and find an amicable solution to the ongoing conflict and end the differences.

Those who are likely to attend the meeting include from the Meitei side, Assembly Speaker Thokchom Satyabrata Singh and MLA Thongam Biswajit Singh and from the Kuki community, Letpao Haokip and Nemcha Kipgen (both state ministers). The Naga community will be represented by MLAs Ram Muivah, Awangbow Newmai and L Dikho, the sources said.

However, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Manipur Chief Minister Biren Singh will not attend the meeting.
 

The meeting comes nearly a month after Shah said that resolving the situation in Manipur requires dialogue between the Kuki and the Meitei communities, and the Centre is in discussion with both the groups.

On June 17, a similar statement was given by the home minister when he reviewed the security situation in Manipur.

A statement by MHA had said that the home minister underscored the importance of coordinated approach to resolve the ongoing ethnic conflict and added that the "MHA will talk to both the groups, Meiteis and Kukis, so as to bridge the ethnic divide, at the earliest."

All the Naga, Kuki and Meitei MLAs and ministers who are likely to attend the meeting were invited by the MHA through letters and telephone calls, sources said.

Ten Kuki MLAs, including seven BJP legislators, have not attended the assembly sessions held in-between.

As per the wishes of the Kukis, the community MLAs have even pressed their demand for separate administrations or a Union Territory for the tribals in Manipur.

The 10 legislators included Letpao Haokip and Nemcha Kipgen, who are ministers in the Biren Singh-led government in Manipur.

Ethnic violence had started in Manipur on May 3 last year after a tribal solidarity march in the hill districts of the state to protest against the majority Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe status.

Since then, over 220 people belonging to both the Kuki and Meitei communities and security personnel have been killed in the continuing violence.