Manipur Chief Minister briefs Amit Shah on violence, tribal MLAs’ demand
Ten days after violence broke out in Manipur, Chief Minister N Biren Singh came to Delhi and met with Home Minister Amit Shah to brief him about the situation in the state, where ethnic violence broke out between the Meiteis and Kuki tribals.
BJP chief JP Nadda also attended the meeting at Shah’s home.
“The Chief Minister briefed the Home Minister about the ground situation in Manipur,” Manipur Health Minister Sapam Ranjan Singh.
He said the Chief Minister was accompanied by four of his cabinet ministers and Manipur BJP chief Sarada Devi.
“The Chief Minister is going back to Imphal tonight and will be addressing a press conference at 9 am in Imphal,” the Health Minister said.
Sources said Singh briefed Shah about the tribal MLAs’ demand for a “separate administration”.
“The situation is slowly limping back to normal, but this issue may deepen the divide between the Meiteis and the Kukis, and can trigger more clashes between the two communities,” a Home Ministry officer said, asking not to be named.
The officer said the Chief Minister has been asked to handle the matter carefully and take adequate precautions so that fresh clashes don’t break out.
The 10 MLAs, seven of them belonging to the BJP and two from the Kuki People’s Alliance, which is an ally of the BJP, issued a statement on Friday demanding a “separate administration” for Kukis.
Violent clashes broke out in Manipur after a “tribal solidarity march” was held in the 10 hill districts on May 3 in protest against Meiteis’ demand for Scheduled Tribes (ST) status.