New Delhi: The Kuki National Organisation (KNO) and the United People’s Front (UPF) on Thursday renewed their demand for a separate Union Territory with a legislature for the Kuki-Zo community in Manipur, arguing that the situation in the state has undergone a fundamental change since the ethnic violence erupted in May 2023.
The two organisations, which are signatories to the Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement with the Centre, said the developments of the past two years have made a return to the pre-conflict political and administrative arrangement neither realistic nor acceptable.
In a joint statement, the groups pointed to the displacement of people and the physical separation of communities, along with a prolonged loss of trust between different sections of the population.
They also alleged that the existing state structure had failed to provide adequate security to the Kuki-Zo people, reinforcing their demand for a separate administrative arrangement with legislative powers.
The organisations further called for caution over any move to prepare or update the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Manipur. They said such an exercise should be taken up only after the completion of a comprehensive Census in the state.
The KNO and UPF maintained that any future political process should take into account the changed ground realities and the concerns surrounding the security and political rights of the Kuki-Zo community.
