BREAKING BAD

The ethnic riots in Manipur, which started nears the Myanmar border, could turn into one of India's biggest national security challenges

- RABI BANERJEE

On May 4 and 5, Union Home Minister Amit Shah was expected to be in Karnataka, taking part in the BJP's final push to retain power in the state. But as riots continued to spiral out of control in Manipur, he was forced to cancel his plans and oversee security efforts from Delhi along with Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and Chief Minister N. Biren Singh. The riots also prompted a visit by Lieutenant General R.P. Kalita, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Army's Eastern Command, to the region to assess the preparedness of the forces near Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and China.

By then, the Army and the Assam Rifles had deployed 125 columns to rein in the rioters. Thirteen companies of the Central Reserve Police Force and large contingents of the Manipur Rifles now assist them. They have already rescued nearly 23,000 civilians and relocated them to Assam Rifles’ camps and other military establishments.

What is unfolding in Manipur is an ethnic clash between the two large communities—the largely Hindu Meiteis, who live in the plains, and the Christian majority Kukis, who dominate the hills. The Meiteis make up 53 per cent of the population of the state and the Kukis and the Nagas, who are Scheduled Tribes, constitute 40 per cent. The valley, dominated by the Meiteis, constitutes just about a tenth of Manipur’s total land area, but it is the most fertile region of the state. The Meiteis also dominate the state’s sociopolitical and economic landscape.