From 'leaked tapes' to drone attacks: How Manipur spiralled back into violence

Manipur has descended into a renewed bout of ethnic bloodletting after a period of relative calm, with the BJP-governed state reporting 11 casualties in a series of attacks since Sept 1 involving mostly suspected tribal militants. Amid increasing public unrest in the Imphal valley over the violence, Pr abin Kalita provides an overview of events in the run-up to the latest upheaval in a state that has been a welter of conflict since May 2023.

‘Leaked’ audio triggers outrage
➤ On Aug 6, social media went to town with an audio clip containing purportedly offensive remarks about a community in a male voice alleged to be that of CM N Biren Singh.

The state govt issued two official statements 12 days apart — on Aug 8 and 20 — about the recording being “doctored”. The govt termed the clip “a malicious attempt to incite communal violence and derail the peace process” after a noticeable improvement in law and order over the previous few months. By then, the damage was done.

Dispute over talks offer to tribe
➤ On Aug 12, Biren Singh told the assembly that the govt would soon hold peace talks with the Thadou community, genealogically part of the Kuki-Zo tribe, in reciprocation of a purported open letter from Thadou Community International.
Two days later, Thadou Tribe Council-General Headquarters issued a statement terming the CM’s statement “baseless”. It said any dialogue that the council wasn’t part of would be treated as “invalid”

Arson targeting BJP functionary
➤ On Aug 27, unidentified armed men attacked the house of Manipur BJP spokesperson T Michael Lamjathang Haokip, who belongs to the Thadou community, in Churachandpur district. The CM described the attack a “direct challenge to the unity and integrity of the state”.

A week later, Haokip’s ancestral house was vandalised and set ablaze. On Aug 30, Biren Singh vowed to restore normalcy in “five to six months” with the Centre’s help. He named Naga BJP MLA Dinganglung Gangmei as an emissary for proposed talks with Kuki-Zo and Meitei representatives.

‘Kukiland’ echo at tribal rallies
➤ On Aug 31, members of the KukiZo community held three rallies in the state to demand a separate administration for ‘Kukiland’ and protest against the viral audio clip allegedly featuring the CM’s “objectionable” comments.

Aerial attacks on valley villages
➤ On Sept 1, two villagers were killed and several others wounded in an attack on a pair of villages in Imphal West district. Suspected tribal militants deployed drones to drop explosives and used sophisticated firearms to target Koutruk village.

A second wave of drone attacks the next day damaged three India Reserve Battalion bunkers. On Sept 6, suspected militants carried out the first reported rocket attacks in the region, killing a 70-year-old priest and wounding five others when one of these landed on the home of the state’s first CM, Mairembam Koireng, in Bishnupur.

On Sept 7, six people were killed in a gunfight between two groups in Jiribam, forcing the state govt to call in Army choppers for surveillance.

Email to Shah & street protests
➤ BJP legislator RK Imo Singh, who is the CM’s son-in-law, emailed Union home minister Amit Shah asking for the 60,000-strong contingent of central forces deployed in the state to be replaced as they had mostly been “mute spectators” to violence by militants. In Imphal, students took to the streets and demanded that the reins of the unified command that handles law and order be transferred to the state govt.