Oldest paramilitary force in country blighted by new questions in Manipur

India's oldest paramilitary force, the Assam Rifles, finds itself haunted by new questions in crisis-hit Manipur, where ethnic violence that erupted in May 2023 has left hundreds of people dead and tens of thousands displaced, and where the force that dates back to 1835 is fighting allegations of discrimination against the Meitei community.

- Prawesh Lama and Rahul Singh

The role of the Assam Rifles in the Northeastern state returned to the spotlight three weeks ago when a radical Meitei group demanded its withdrawal from Manipur, while Kukis sought to nip any such move, exposing deep fissures in Manipuri politics and society that have obstructed peace.

At a meeting called by the radical Meitei group Arambai Tenggol in Imphal on January 24, as many as 36 Meitei legislators and two MPs took oath to protect Manipur's integrity and signed a memorandum to be sent to the Centre. Among the six demands in the oath was the removal of Assam Rifles from Manipur.

The Kukis reacted in less than 24 hours, with a demand of their own.

On January 25, 10 Kuki MLAs wrote to home minister Amit Shah about the meeting called by the Meitei radical group and the demands of the Meitei legislators to replace Assam Rifles with another force. The Kuki MLAs made a request too-the Assam Rifles should stay put in the state for the safety of the tribals.

The ethnic clashes and the turn of events in Manipur, which have left at least 210 people dead and around 50,000 displaced, have driven a wedge between the people over the role of the Assam Rifles, whose responsibilities include counterterrorism operations in the Northeast and Jammu and Kashmir, and guarding the India-Myanmar border that passes through Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh. Twenty Assam Rifles battalions are deployed along the border.

The Assam Rifles can also be called to assist the army in warlike situations. It took part in the two world wars, the 1962 war with China and the 1971 India-Pakistan war. It was also a part of Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) in Sri Lanka in the late 1980s.