Songpi: The Kuki Human Rights Council (KHRC) has vehemently condemned what it termed the forced and undemocratic resumption of public transport services on National Highway-2 from Imphal to Dimapur and Guwahati on 21st August, 2026, calling the move a mockery of democracy and tribal rights. In a strongly-worded press release issued under Ref: KHRC/PR/2026/021, the Council said this is not peace but forced peace, imposed by state power upon a wounded and divided people who are yet to receive justice.
Rejecting the official claim by the Government of India and the Government of Manipur that 125 passengers travelled through Kuki-majority Kangpokpi and Naga-dominated Senapati without any incident, the KHRC said the statement conceals the truth. According to the Council, there was no incident only because the entire stretch was sanitized and heavily militarized, with Meitei civilians escorted under heavy security cover by central forces through Kuki ancestral lands.
Raising serious constitutional questions, the KHRC asked how the state can facilitate and guard one community parading through tribal areas in the name of normalcy when thousands of Kuki people continue to live in relief camps in Churachandpur, Kangpokpi, Chandel and Tengnoupal. When justice for the ethnic cleansing committed against the Kuki people since May 2023 is still denied, such actions prove that tribal land, tribal autonomy and tribal safety are secondary to a majoritarian agenda.
The Council asserted that the move proves beyond doubt that both the Government of India led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Government of Manipur are openly siding with the Meitei community. It said the call to forgive and forget the past cannot be forced upon victims while perpetrators roam free and are rewarded with safe passage. True peace cannot be achieved by buses guarded by guns, but only through political justice, separation and respect for tribal land and rights.
In a sharp political charge, the KHRC further urged the Government of India to immediately stop its divide-and-rule tactics within the Kuki community. It alleged that the state is using surrendered groups, Suspension of Operations (SoO) factions and proxy civil bodies to create division, confusion and internal conflict among the Kukis and to manufacture endorsement for this forced normalcy. The Council warned that such tactics are unacceptable and will not succeed.
Calling upon the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to stop delaying justice, the KHRC reiterated its long-standing political demand that the only just and lasting solution to the crisis is the creation of a separate State or Union Territory with Legislature for the Kuki people. It said political separation is necessary to ensure security, dignity and constitutional protection for the tribal minority in Manipur.
In its resolution, the Council listed six points: rejection of forced normalcy imposed by the Narendra Modi-led BJP Government as undemocratic and unconstitutional; condemnation of the use of security forces to facilitate movement of one community while ignoring security and justice needs of tribals; demand to cease all divide-and-rule policies against Kukis; demand for a separate State/UT; appeal to all tribal bodies and Scheduled Tribe communities across India to view this as a dangerous precedent against tribal rights; and an appeal to the National Human Rights Commission and international human rights bodies to take cognizance of state-sponsored majoritarianism.
The statement concluded with the assertion, “Peace without justice is oppression. We will not accept it,” issued by the Department of Information and Publicity, Kuki Human Rights Council.
To understand the strong reaction, the current highway dispute must be seen in the context of the Kuki-Meitei conflict that erupted on 3rd May, 2023. The violence began after the All Tribal Students’ Union Manipur (ATSUM) organized a Tribal Solidarity March in Churachandpur and other hill districts opposing the demand for Scheduled Tribe status for the majority Meitei community. What started as a protest quickly spiralled into widespread ethnic violence between the valley-based Meiteis and the hill-based Kuki tribes.
Since May 2023, more than 250 people have been killed, over 60,000 displaced, and hundreds of villages and places of worship destroyed, leading to a total population transfer where Kukis were driven out of Imphal Valley and Meiteis out of Kuki-dominated hill areas. The state now stands geographically divided into two ethnic enclaves with buffer zones manned by central forces. The Kuki people continue to live in relief camps, demanding justice and political security.
The Kuki people argue that they can no longer live under the same administration after the complete breakdown of trust, and have since demanded a separate administration in the form of a Union Territory with Legislature under Article 239A of the Constitution. The Meitei side maintains Manipur’s territorial integrity and opposes any division. It is in this context that the resumption of public buses on NH-2 is being viewed as artificial normalcy without justice.
