EDITORIAL: What happened to India-held Kashmiris following abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019 is now on display in the Indian state of Manipur. The Hindu majority that occupies the state’s fertile mainland and is in power as government wants to be equal beneficiaries of what the Christians-dominated tribesmen enjoy in form of special quota in education and employment sector, and also the right to buy their land.
The resistance to this thievish move by the Kuki tribesmen has provoked the Meiteis (dominant largely Hindu community) that is now on rampage throughout the state, particularly in the capital, against the Christian Kukis. Up to Monday, approximately 41 churches had been razed to the ground, hundreds of their houses burnt and an unknown number of Christians killed or forced to flee to the forests. The assaults have spread to Delhi as well where the Kukis are hunted down. The community clash has now reached Delhi where Kuki students were attacked by a gang of the Meiteis.
According to a petition filed with the Supreme Court, people belonging to the Meitei community were seen brandishing automatic weapons, which is surprising because even the police force would not be in possession of such modern weaponry. As is the case in mainland India where Muslims are the target of online hate speech in Manipur too the Hindutva zealots are targeting the Christians. Given all that is the Hindutva campaign, there is not much of hope that the Christian Kukis would be pulled out of the virtual hell by India’s apex court – as was the case when it took up the case of abrogation of Article 370.
There is a history replete with incidents of resistance by tribal people in the north-eastern states against foreign takeover. Manipur was the last region that came under British control following the defeat and withdrawal of Japanese forces. And the British saw to it that they are under no pressure to change their faith, compromise their ethnicity and autonomous governance.
The newly independent state of India too agreed to this by recognizing them as Scheduled Tribes, and granted constitutional protection to these 34 tribes, the most prominent among them being the Nagas and the Kukis. Over the many decades they have been at war with Delhi and succeeded in retaining their ethnic identity, religious freedom and their land that is now gold to be hunted and captured by the Hindu baniyas.
That war for self-protection is again under a challenge is a fact; and now all the more severe as the Modi-patronized plan to turn India into a Hindu Rashtra gains currency. To the extent that Manipur is part of India and therefore the ongoing tussle between Hindus and Christians is an internal matter, there may be some logic to it.
But the force against tribals to surrender their land to Hindus and become Hindu to survive is not India’s internal issue. It is gross violation of human rights, to say the least. It is important to note that September 13 marks the ‘Darkest Day’ in the history of the Kukis as on this single day in 1993 more than 115 innocent Kukis, including women and children, were massacred. That pogrom lasted for as many as five years.
Be that as it may, the world community is urged to pay its full attention to the plight of the Kukis and the unprecedented belligerence of Hidutva zealots against the members of minorities, including Christians and Muslims. Don’t let India’s geo-strategy overwhelm the world opinion and remain unconcerned about its brutality against the tribal Christians of Manipur. The world is now required to set aside the Gandhian lens to see India; it should see India through the Modi lens.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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