Songpi: The Kuki Human Rights Council, headquartered at Lamka, Songpi, has strongly condemned and expressed deep disappointment over the observation made by Chief Justice of India, Justice Surya Kant, on 14th August, 2026, where he urged both Kuki and Meitei groups to make peace and remove the ongoing blockade on National Highway-2.
In its official press statement bearing Ref. No. KHRC/PR-08/2026 issued by its Information and Publicity Wing, the Council stated that such observations from the highest court pain the victims further, as it equates the victims with the aggressors.
The KHRC respectfully but firmly reminded the Supreme Court that its sacred constitutional duty is not to engage in political negotiations or to deliver sermons on peace from the bench. The primary duty of the Supreme Court as the guardian of the Constitution is to fight for justice and to ensure that justice is delivered to the most marginalized victims. Without justice, any call for peace is hollow.
Kuki people are still waiting for justice after three years
Elaborating on the suffering, the Council stated that the Kuki people are the victims of the ethnic cleansing violence that started on May 3, 2023. For more than three years, the Kuki people are still waiting for justice.
Since May 2023, more than 250 innocent Kuki people, including women, children, and pastors, have been killed. More than 7,000 houses have been burnt to ashes, more than 360 villages have been destroyed, and more than 200 churches and synagogues have been burnt. More than 41,000 Kuki people have been displaced and are still living in relief camps in Lamka, Kangpokpi, Mizoram and Delhi without proper food, medicine and education.
The statement highlighted the horrific crimes committed against Kuki women. More than 90 percent of the women victims were raped before being killed, and most victims including infants and elderly were burnt alive or beheaded. The world saw Kuki women being paraded naked, but till today the judiciary has not delivered a single exemplary punishment to the perpetrators.
The Council questioned, where is the CBI chargesheet and where is the conviction. The CBI, which was entrusted to investigate the most heinous cases, has failed to punish the real masterminds who are roaming freely in Imphal valley. There is no justice for the women who were paraded naked, no justice for the children who were burnt alive.
The Council asserted that the Kuki community is a peace-loving community and wants peace more than anyone else because they are the ones suffering in relief camps. But justice must come before peace. There can be no peace without justice, and peace cannot be built on the graves of innocent victims.
Blockade is a cry for justice, not a crime
Defending the blockade on National Highway-2, the KHRC said the Supreme Court says blockade does not serve either group and highways are a lifeline. The Council asked, what about the lifeline of the Kuki people which was cut off in May 2023. When Kukis were not allowed to enter Imphal, when essential medicines were blocked from entering Lamka and Kangpokpi, where was the Supreme Court.
The Council clarified that blocking of National Highway is not against the Indian Constitution. It is a legitimate and democratic form of protest guaranteed under Article 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(b) which gives the right to freedom of speech and expression and to assemble peaceably. This blockade is not to harass ordinary people, but it is the last resort of a persecuted people whose voice has not been heard for three years.
In a direct message to the Apex Court, the KHRC said, if the Supreme Court wants highways to be opened, it must first direct the Government of India to give political justice, a separate Union Territory with Legislature. Open the road to justice, and we will open the road on the ground.
Separate Administration is the only justice and only future
Reiterating its political demand, the Council said its demand for peace is very clear. The only justice for the Kuki people is Separate Administration in the form of a Union Territory with Legislature under Article 239A of the Constitution.
For the Kuki people, Separate Administration is not just a political demand, it is a matter of survival. After the ethnic cleansing, Kukis cannot live under the same administration that attacked them. The Manipur government led by the Meitei majority has lost the confidence of the Kuki people. The Kuki people have been living without constitutional protection for more than three years.
Without Separate Administration, there is no peace, no security, no future and no dignity. Kuki children have lost three academic years. Kuki government employees cannot go to Imphal for their salaries. Kuki patients cannot go to RIMS for treatment. Separation is the only way for survival and the only guarantee against a repeat of another genocide.
The Council said the Kuki people are still living in relief camps in miserable conditions, waiting for the Government of India to listen, while the Government continues to push for forced peace without addressing the root cause.
File Photo: Press Statement issued by Information & Publicity Wing, Kuki Human Rights Council (KHRC) on 15th August, 2026 (Ref. No. KHRC/PR-08/2026) stating that Supreme Court should deliver justice first, not sermons on peace, and that NH-2 blockade is a cry for justice, not a crime.
Therefore, the KHRC urged the Supreme Court not to indulge in political compromise and false equivalence between Kuki and Meitei. The two communities are not on equal footing.
We are not equal parties. We are not two warring groups. We are victims seeking justice. The Meiteis are the aggressors who attacked us. Do not treat victims and aggressors the same. This is a violation of natural justice, the statement said.
The KHRC finally urged the Supreme Court to hear the voice of the Kuki victims, to stand with the Constitution, and to deliver justice first. Peace will follow justice, not the other way around.
