Union Territory with Legislature:  Only Way to Permanent Peace!

With the violence between the Hill (Kukis) and Valley (Meiteis) in Manipur showing no sign of abatement, the demand for Separate Administration from the Kuki ethnic group grows louder and steadfast. Any attempt from the State and Centre for peace and dialogue at this point seems impractical. Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) and Committee on Tribal Unity (COTU) declaration that it will not endorse any move from the government as long as N. Biren Singh remains the Chief Minister, and President’s Rule is invoked in the State, is a clear message that the Kukis have lost all faith in the present regime. Vesna Pešića, Professor, at the University of Belgrade observed that “Ethnic conflict is caused by the fear of the future lived through the past.” The majority Valley-Meitei’s fear of their future under the pressure of land, which they claimed would imperil their life, is the primary cause of the present-day violence. But why a specific tribe was singled out, is a question shrouded in mystery, and must be scrutinised.

The current spate of violence has left 115 or more dead, around 3000 injured and displaced more than 50,000 people. Experts have argued that the present hate campaign and the violence meted out towards the Kukis is akin to ethnic cleansing. All attempts to mediate peace between the waring communities fail to yield any results. For instance, the outright rejection of the constitution of 51-member Peace Committee by all stakeholders was a tipping point. The persistent violence and the deep ethnic schisms between the two ethnic groups, conjoin with rampant rumours and false allegation testify that the time is pregnant, to part ways and remain good neighbours than stay under one roof with suspicion and kill one other.

Demand for Separate Administration

The demand for autonomy by the Kukis is not of recent origin. It began way back in the 1980’s through an arm movement under the conglomerate of two Kuki armed groups—United People’s Front (UPF) and Kuki National Organisation (KNO). The groundwork for a Tripartite Talk with the Centre, State was laid with the signing of the Suspension of Operation (SoO) in 2008, with the laying down of arms by the Kuki Armed Groups. The negotiation, hitherto, revolve around creating an Autonomous Territorial Council within the state of Manipur; but the severity of the violence today and the ripple effect of the intense animosity have forced the Kukis to ameliorate their demand for total separation from Manipur.

The Kuki leaders’ unequivocal demand for a Separate Administration should be appreciated as well as taken with seriousness. Separation would only serve to strengthen the notion of national cohesion rather than pose a threat to national security as purported by certain people. Furthermore, separation will result in national integration into the larger Indian State rather than the dissolution of the Union of India. A typical example is the separation of the Khasi, Jiantia, and Garo hills as the State of Meghalaya from Assam in 1971. Today, these Tribes are thriving under the protection of the Constitution, and they stand as a testament of the wisdom of the then government.

How Plausible is the Demand?

It is the centre’s discretion under Article 3 of the Constitution to put an end to this enigma. And the most plausible way to bring permanent solution to this perpetual problem and ensure lasting peace is Separate Administration. What sort of Separate Administration could possibly be considered—Autonomy under the Sixth Schedule; Autonomous Territorial Council, and Union Territory with Legislature? Out of the three, the most appropriate and durable solution for the is a Union Territory with legislature, if not a full-fledged State. Let us consider the following criteria to address this proposal.

Population Component:

Manipur is the 25 th most populous State in India (Handbook of Statistics on Indian States). The total population of Manipur as per 2011 Census is 28,55,794. Of this, the rural population is 17, 36,236 and the urban population 8,34,154. In absolute numbers, out of the total increase of 403,602 added in the last decade, the contribution of rural is 1,45,416 and urban area is 2,58,186. 3. The growth rate of population in Manipur in the last decade is 18.6 per cent (Rural 9.1 %; Urban 44.8%). So, the allegations of exponential growth rate of the Kukis with 22 per cent as claimed by the valley-based Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and others is illogical. Most importantly, the Census for 2021 is put on hold as of now. Any statistics cited outside 2011 Census as a point of reference is irrelevant.

With 53 per cent, the Meitei population stands at 15,13,570 lakhs while the Tribals comprised of around 10 lakhs which is 35 per cent of the total population as per 2011 Census. Out of this the Kukis and its cognate tribes roughly comprises of around 6 lakhs. With a decadal growth rate of 21.8 per cent for Manipur, the population is expected to rise for all communities. Hence, a decade later (2011-2021) the population of the Kukis would ideally be between 7-8 lakhs. Hence, in terms of population, the Kukis stands identical to that of Sikkim’s population—a full-fledged State which stands at 6, 10,577 as per 2011 census.

Furthermore, the population of the Kukis is larger that of the Union territory of Ladakh (3,01,000 Lakhs), Andaman and Nicobar Island (3,80,581), Dadra and Nagar Havelli (3,43,709), Lakshadweep (64,473), Daman and Diu (2,43,247), and even more than the archipelagic state and country in South Asia—the Maldives (3,80,492).

Land Factor

Manipur is the 23rd largest State in India in terms of physical/geographical size with a total area of 22,327 sq. km. 90 per cent of this total geographical area comprises of the Hills inhabited by the Hill Tribes—Kukis and Nagas, which constitute around 20,094.3 Sq. Km. Of this, the areas inhabited by the Kukis comprises of hill districts such as Pherzawl, Churachandpur, Chandel, Tengnoupal, Kangpokpi districts with a total area of approximately 12,641 Sq. Km. The sizable presence of the Naga population in the above-mentioned districts commensurate with the sizable Kuki population in the Naga dominated hill districts such as Ukhrul, Kamjong, Senapati, Tamenglong and Jiribam.

The total area inhabited by the Kukis and its cognate tribes is even larger than the total size of States like Tripura (10,491 Sq. Km.), Sikkim (7,096 Sq. Km.) Goa (3,702 Sq. Km.); and Union Territories of Andaman & Nicobar Island (8,249 Sq. Km.), Delhi (1,483 Sq. Km.), Puducherry (479 Sq. Km.), Chandigarh (114 Sq. Km.), Daman & Diu (112 Sq. Km.), and Lakshadweep (32 Sq. Km). Hence, in terms of area size the community in absolute sense of the term qualifies to be UT, if not a full-fledged State.

Cultural and Ethnic Elements:

In India, the establishment of States based on cultural and ethnic considerations is not new. The establishment of Linguistic States represented our nation’s first big democratic political test. In 1953, Andhra Pradesh became the first state to be established on the basis of a language. Punjab, Assam, Kerala, Orissa, and Maharashtra are additional states formed on linguistic grounds. To guarantee that speakers of the same language resided in the same State was the aim behind this. In addition, rather than recognising language disparities, certain states, such Nagaland, Uttarakhand, and Jharkhand, were established in recognition of cultural, ethnic, or geographic diversity.

Taking into consideration the circumstances under which the aforementioned States were established, the Kukis and their cognate tribes primarily speak and interact in the same dialect unlike their neighbour tribal Nagas in Manipur, where a certain Naga dialect is alien to the other. The Kukis also share affinal and consanguineal ties, and they belong to the same kindred tribes. They also share the same cultural and traditional practises that are integral to their way of life—music, folktales, dance, food, dialects, etc. Hence, by any relevant yardstick of measurement the Kukis qualify all relevant standards for a Separate Administration.

Compensating the Kukis:

The contribution made by the Kukis, who battled the British in what is known historically as the Anglo-Kuki War of 1917–1919, has not received enough acknowledgment from India. No community that fought the powerful British for three years in a row to defend their territory is known to exist. Because no son of the soil would be steadfast enough to battle until their last breath for something that doesn’t belong to them; this testament disproves the allegations that the Kukis are “illegal immigrants.” Any doubts about the veracity of the Kukis and the wars they waged are only based on their scant understanding of their rich history.

In addition, it is important to acknowledge the role of Kukis in India’s independence movement. By far they made up the largest contingent—159 fighting men out of the 188 freedom fighters—that fought alongside the INA against the colonial British are etched in the INA-Memorial Complex at Moirang, in Manipur. In actuality, India owes the Kukis a debt for the supreme sacrifice they made for India’s independence. It would be injustice to grant them anything less than a Separate Administration. Furthermore, placing them at the mercy of their neighbours is nothing less than a criminal conduct that must be put an end to.

Conclusion

According to Karan Thapar of ‘The Wire,’ “Sometimes when differences run so deep and last for so long, maybe it is best to separate.” Any future attempts by the Centre and State to form any Peace Committee to resolve the current crisis will inevitably fail. In other words, it will be much simpler to permanently divide the two ethnic groups than to convince them to coexist. In essence, Separate Administration is now the only choice the Kukis have considering the circumstances they have endured. The centre must hasten, but handle this delicate crisis with utmost caution to prevent any spillover effects. At this crucial juncture, the Centre must avoid picking short-term remedies over long-term solutions. The Kukis have absolute faith in the wisdom of the Centre to right the colonial wrongs once and for all. The best possible tribute the Indian Government could provide would be to grant the Kukis a Separate Administration and cement permanent peace in the region.