Editorial

Nagas : First to bear the brunt Call to weed out illegals

The first to bear the brunt of human incursion from across the border is obviously the Naga community and the decision of the United Naga Council to toe the ‘NRC first, then census’ call is in line with what is actually happening at the ground..

Price of a syringe put at Rs 60 ! Need to probe the ‘scam’

Sugnu Assembly Constituency MLA K Ranjit was in his element in the Assembly on March 16 and what a significant point he brought up for discussion. It was with a reason why The Sangai Express picked out, italised and gave in bold two paragraphs of the inpu..

Windstorm, hailstone and downpour Trail of destruction

The sky is still overcast and the weather office has said that rain accompanied by hailstorm is likely to continue for the next few days. When the first drops of rain started falling in Imphal on the adjoining nights of March 14 and March 15, many welcome..

War on Drugs campaign since 2018 Kingpins still at large

Nine square kilometre or 900 hectares of poppy plantations razed to the ground in two months, that is from January 1, 2026 to February 28, 2026. The drive falls perfectly in line with the War on Drugs campaign launched by the State Government at the latte..

Call for Just and Fair Delimitation Weed out the infiltrators

It should be obvious to all, particularly to Delhi and Imphal. The Campaign for Just and Fair Delimitation (CJFD) is intent on making its stand that census and thereby delimitation, should come only after an exercise to weed out the illegal immigrants is..

Fight with Karbis, Nagas, Meiteis The common denominator

The record does not lie and in over 90 percent of all the ethnic clashes in North East region, particularly in Manipur, the central character has always been the Kuki community. This is not something that has been plucked out off the blue or something coo..

Why drag in the ST demand ? Posers from ANSAM

In so far as it is to the knowledge of The Sangai Express the Congress or its MP, Bimol Akoijam representing the Inner Parliamentary Constituency in the Lok Sabha, has not made a public stand on the demand that the Meiteis be included in the Scheduled Tri..

Roads, water and power supply Address these issues

A semblance of governance now. Coming as it has after May 3, 2023, and the Government at Imphal seems set to spread the ‘feel good’ sentiments to the people. And the timing is also on track, as Manipur is set to go to polls in the early part o..

Census exercise & call for deferment

The call made by the Campaign for Just and Fair Delimitation to local politicians, particularly MLAs and Ministers, to stop patronizing and sheltering illegal immigrants merits a thorough deliberation. With the Government of India poised to start census o..

Back after a five day break The debate on the long break

Imphal based newspaper houses are back at work after a five day break during the Yaoshang festival. Different takes there are with some questioning why the media, read newspapers, should take a five day break, with the one line statement that the newspape..

The festival of colour is on Yaoshang greetings to Manipur

One of the biggest festivals in Manipur and what makes Yaoshang all that more beautiful is the increasing secular identity it has managed to carve out for itself. A festival which is today not identified with only the Vaishnavite Hindus, the Meiteis in th..

Demonstrating there is a Govt in place Noting focus on roads

At least Imphal is trying to demonstrate that there is a Government in place and this is something that should be noted. Left unattended for years, after violence erupted on May 3, 2023, the Government seems to have put its focus in place. Chief Minister..

Putting appointment order on stay MU: The infamy continues

It is scary. It is disturbing. It is unacceptable. At the moment it is the judiciary, the High Court of Manipur, which has stepped in to stay the appointment list furnished by Manipur University and this itself should say so many things. And even as the H..

Infiltration from across the border Lessons from Litan

Certain points should be clear, very clear and if these cases do not open the eyes of the people concerned then one wonders what will. Even as the NSCN (IM), the Tangkhul Naga Long and others concerned have come out strongly against the gradual occu..

Of Chinkies, Momos and Ching-Chong Chinaman At the centre of all the clashes

Ironic it is, for while people from the North East region continue to get hounded and subjected to racial discrimination, the people in the region, particularly Manipur, continue to be at loggerheads with each other. On February 20, three women from Aruna..

CM off to right start with Delhi sojourn ? Date with PM : First in 3 years

Fruitful. This is one word that comes to mind if one takes a long, hard look at the Delhi sojourn of Chief Minister Y Khemchand and his two deputies. Left Imphal on February 21 and in a span of 3/4 days, the newly inducted Chief Minister has met the who i..

CM off to right start with Delhi sojourn ? Date with PM : First in 3 years

Impunity in attacking Tangkhul villages ‘Hand’ behind the aggressions

The pattern is unmistakable. Go back to May 3, 2023. Fully armed persons taking part in the so called Tribal Solidarity March and then marching towards Torbung to pick out houses of the Meiteis and then set them on fire. This followed shortly after Meitei..

Reflecting the rot in society Worshipping ill gotten wealth

Certain things, make that certain vital things, are just not right and it would take more than a call to set it right. Just a few days after students appearing for the Class XII examinations made it to the news for all the wrong reasons, tearing and burni..

Inducting 7 more in the Ministry Council of Ministers

It seems the Council of Ministers is set to be expanded and Manipur may well see the full strength of the Ministry-at 12-if the report that Chief Minister Yumnam Khem-chand is set to proceed to Delhi on February 21 and meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah o..

Steps towards restoring normalcy Burden of expectations

One year is obviously too short a time for anyone to make a mark and this is where the burden of expectations can sit heavy on the shoulder of anyone, more so on a Chief Minister who has just assumed office. A reality which Y Khemchand cannot afford to&nb..

Look beyond the act of rowdyism Time for Manipur to think

If this does not compel Manipur to put on her thinking cap and look beyond the act of some unruly students exploding in anger and tearing/burning answer sheets and admit cards on the first day of the Class XII examinations then nothing will. Look beyond t..

Growing obsession with private tuitions What is taught in the classrooms ?

Stop. Pause. Think over it. The Sangai Express joins the State Government, the parents and family members in wishing the students appearing for their Class XII examinations, for their success, but this is the opportune moment for everyone to look back and..

Litan to Ireng to Chumoukedima The common denominator

One common denominator that runs through all the major incidents in Manipur and in neighbouring Nagaland, since the evening of May 3, 2023, has been the term Kuki. In the days that followed May 3, 2023, Kuki as a term has been central in the stand off wit..

Noting steps taken up after Feb 4 Small but significant moves

Sworn in on February 4 and Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand along with his Council of Ministers appear to be taking some small steps to heal Manipur. The recent visit to Jiribam wherein the Chief Minister interacted with displaced persons of both the Meite..

Communal violence or something else?

The widespread violence that broke out on the fateful day of May 3, 2023 is refusing to die down even after two years and ten months. Although the clash that raged on for over two years between Kukis and Meiteis seemed to have been contained to some exten..

On the march towards 2027 The days before the next polls

In a year Manipur will go to polls and any talk on the next Assembly elections logically revolves around the question of where the BJP stands in the perception of the people. With a popular Government back in the thick of things, the saffron party w..

Litan stand off : The ugly stand off Drunken brawl to ethnic clash

This is the third consecutive day that The Sangai Express is commenting on this for this is a case of a fisti-cuff (drunken brawl, if one goes by what some folks have had to say) morphing into an ethnic clash complete with all its associated ugliness. Abo..

On record : Not AR personnel ‘Allowed’ to burn for 4 days ?

A clarification is in line as the personnel who were accused by some youths of aiding arsonists in setting some houses on fire were not Assam Rifles personnel but Army personnel. It is also on record that Manipur Police have booked two persons for alleged..

Accusation against AR going viral What is happening at Litan ?

What is happening at Litan ? No one, specially those at Imphal, seems to know but it is disturbing to see that over 20 houses belonging to both the Tangkhuls and the Kukis have been targeted, substantially damaged and in some cases totally destroyed. The..

Sidelining the ST for Meiteis demand Changing narratives

It was a lie, but a lie told so emphatically that it is amazing to see that this no longer features in any of the talks doing the round to resolve the issue which has been plaguing Manipur since the evening of May 3, 2023. It was supposedly against the di..

Discard the ‘politics of clash’ Tasks before new Govt

In zeroing in on Yumnam Khemchand as the Chief Minister of Manipur after nearly a year of President’s Rule, it is now the job of the Centre to ensure that all possible co-operation is extended to the newly installed popular Government. Judging from..

Eyes now on man from Singjamei AC Khemchand : The dark horse

The dark horse and this idiom sits neatly on the head of newly sworn in Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand. Things have literally moved fast in the last 48 hours or so. Just one day after BJP National General Secretary Tarun Chugh was named as the Central ob..

Blinding people with the dazzles January 22 to February 2

A bit off track this is, particularly so in the season of news, opinions and speculations over the return of a popular Government, but this is something which hurts and which Manipur should not look over. Even as the BJP leadership appointed Tarun Chugh,..

Making a beeline for Delhi Making a comeback ?

December 13, 2025 and February 2, 2026. The sense of deja vu is unmistakable for the common thread running through the two dates is more or less the same-return of a popular Government. Nearly 60 days back, a number of BJP MLAs including ex-Chief Minister..

Last day of the first month of 2026 A march with a purpose

It was a rally, a march with a purpose and the purpose of the rally was not lost in the decibels of the slogans that sliced through the air of Imphal on the last day of the first month of 2026. January 31, 2026 ended with a purpose and Meitei CSOs u..

March 31 timeframe for resettlement From December to now March

Another extension. Par for the course, but look deeper and this somewhat boils down to the PR regime admitting that they have fallen short of the earlier assurance that the Internally Displaced Persons would be resettled by December of 2025. A sort of an..

Making them fall in line A wag of the finger should do

Truth be told, all it needs is a wag of the finger from Union Home Minister Amit Shah and the powers behind the hoarse cry of the Kuki-Zo organisations opposing Government formation would fall in line. The rider is whether the Centre entertains any idea o..

Give more teeth to War on Drugs campaign Selective silence of CoTU, KIM

Is the War on Drugs on track ? Or has it managed to put a check on the large scale poppy plantations in the hills of Manipur, particularly in the areas where the Kuki-Zos dominate ? Or has it resulted in a sort of a confrontation between communities, best..

Cracking down on poppy plantation Backing War on Drugs

Banned organisation, but the course of action taken up by them can be understood within the War on Drugs campaign launched by the then BJP led Government back in 2018. Destruction of poppy fields and law enforcing agencies of the Government have been on t..

Stepping into 2026 on the wrong foot ? Need to loook forward

Year 2026 has not started on the right note at all and in just the first month of the new year, Manipur grabbed headlines for two very wrong reasons. First was the news that a Kuki woman, who was allegedly raped on May 15 of 2023 at New Checkon area passe..

ISBT : Not exactly an auspicious start Refurbished and repaired

It did not have an auspicious start and there is nothing to suggest that the State Government has picked up a point or two to see that the past is not repeated. Inaugurated with much fanfare by then Prime Minister the Late Dr Manmohan Singh in the company..

Waking up to a shocking Jan 22 Of folded hands and two shots

Manipur woke up to a shocking January 22, for greeting the people were the video clips of a man, Mayanglambam Rishikanta, ostensibly pleading for mercy before he was shot dead with two bullets piercing through his head. Not surprisingly the video clips we..

Taking the ST demand to the next poll MMTU right on track

The Meetei (Meitei) Tribe Union appears to be on track and focus should be on how to take the ST for Meiteis demand to the centre stage when Manipur goes in for Assembly elections in 2027. This is the line that The Sangai Express had been advocating for s..

Looking back at the May of 2023 Ghost of false narratives

The Sangai Express condoles the demise of the young Kuki girl who passed away after battling an illness, an illness allegedly linked to the trauma she had to undergo after being ‘gang raped’ on May 15, 2023, after she was ‘kidnapped̵..

Lessons from the days after May 3, 2023 Consistent narrative needed

Has Manipur learnt any lesson from the days that followed May 3, 2023 ? If so, what are the lessons that have been learnt ? There will be no easy answer here and this is where it is important to ask whether Manipur is ready to learn. And to be ready..

Spadework needed for normalcy to return Ball in the court of Delhi

The talk of the town is when the popular Government will return as well as who will be anointed as the Chief Minister. The one year itch is certainly catching up, but in all the talks doing the round on Government formation not one, repeat not one single..

The game that is being played Tearing apart Manipur

Free movement of all from March 8 of 2025 was reduced to a big joke. Resettlement of all displaced people by December of 2025, with the exception of Churachand-pur, Moreh and Kangpokpi has also come close to the understanding of a hollow promise. And now..

Forcing petrol pumps to shut The Govt is answerable

Eerily reminiscent of the earlier days when blockade, under any name-highway blockade, economic blockade, you name it-crippled the National Highways and people were starved of the bare essential minimums of the day, scarcity of fuel being the most promine..

Going on the offensive against poppy Guns backing the drug trade

Certain things are clear. Of the many armed groups operating in the hills of Manipur, the Kamson led Zeliangrong United Front is one of the few which has gone on the offensive against poppy plantations. Another point that is also crystal clear for all to..