Major causes of Kuki & Meetei conflict
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T Biren Singh
Mr PS Haokip is a influential person in Kuki society and he had/has an influential group. He went around many times to cover Chin in Myanmar, Mizoram and Chhitagong hills tract in Bangladesh, where he and his friends zealously talked about the establishment of a Kuki land which shall include parts of these three countries. His head quarter is located at Churcahandpur which he calls Lamka. “The Zale’n Gam” and “The Zo Land” are some of the important books of Mr PS Haokip and his party. He is now President of Kuki National Organisation (KNO). He says Kuki is just like an eagle which is the top carnivorous animal in food chain in an ecosystem. Eagle is the strongest carnivorous bird, no bird can fight with eagle and all birds run away from eagle. In the same manner, he opined that Kuki is like eagle, they are not afraid of any ethnic group or the Government of India, Myanmar, and Bangladesh.
He said the word “Zale’n” means free flight of an eagle which is equivalent to the meaning of Freedom and Sovereignty. He did not mention the meaning of “Gam”. The meaning of Gam is not found the English dictionary. The meaning of gam which no English Dictionary explains, is meant the “ Manipur Hill Areas (Acquisition of Chiefs Right) Act- 1966”. The Act very nicely defines “Gam” as a tract of land in hill area held by a chief. Then what is the meaning of “Chief” and how many Chiefs are there in Manipur, who and when Chiefs are elected or nominated, many questions arise now. The notorious Kuki can establish any village anywhere in Manipur covering any number of Gam(s) thereby appointing Chiefs and Deputy Chiefs at any time under this Act.
This very Act of 1966 is now become a favorite tool/weapons for Kuki to occupy land in Manipur. With this very Act, Kukis are encroaching on forest lands in Manipur forming Gam(s) and Chiefs. This process had been going on continuously on the soil of Manipur.
The Act originates from the Chin hill of Myanmar (erstwhile Burma). A similar Act in Myanmar and Chieftainship in chin hill of Myanmar was abolished by Myanmar Government long back. The Assam Government had also abolished “Assam Lushai Hill District (Acquisition of Chiefs’ Right) Act – 1954”. Hence, this draconian Act is removed and abolished in the place of its origin, but it is still in practise in Manipur. Now, there is need of cancellation/abolishing of this Act in Manipur also.
92% of Manipur’s land is classified as Hill area and 8% of it is classified as valley area. Again 2% of valley area is water bodies and wetland ecosystem and the inhabitable area in the valley region is only 6%. Again 80% of State population thrive in valley region, it is congested.
This congested fertile land is targeted by the Kuki chiefs to occupy by any means. Their dream of occupying this fertile congested area was already initiated by the Kuki Chiefs since 1980, at their meeting convened with an agenda on the Penetration to Imphal valley. Hence, the violence which started on the 03rd May, 2023 was not immediate start on that day only, but it was explosion of conspiracy bomb which was seeded / planted in the mind of the Kuki Chiefs, intellectuals since 1980, it was a spontaneous and continuous process for formation of Zale’n Gam (the Kuki Nation/Zo Nation ) since then.
Manipur has got a land law under and name and style of “Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms Act– 1960”. The land law is operational in only 8% of the State valley land and 92% of the hill land has got no land law. People living in the 8% of the valley land are given ownership of the land by giving land documents like Dag-chitha and Patta. When there is land dispute the Revenue Department settles the dispute by referring to the land records.
People living in the 92% of State’s hill land is the “Manipur Hill Areas (Acquisition of Chiefs Right) Act- 1966”. There is no demarcation of land under this Act and hence there are no Dag-chitha and patta. Demarcations of land in Hill are lump sum. There is a term “gam” under this Chiefs’ Right Act -1966 which has no geographical size of the land. The word gam is not found in any English Dictionary. But, the very Act defined that the Gam means a tract of land in hill area held by a Chief. There can be unlimited gam(s) in hill area of Manipur. There is another term “Chief” who is the head of the gam. The Chief has the supreme power of the Gam area which has no limitation in geographical size. The Chief has the supreme power of bringing in anybody into the gam or expel out anybody from the gam. The poor Kuki individuals/families are at the mercy of the chiefs. This Act is very much liked by the Kuki Chiefs and favorable Act of the Kuki chiefs. (To be contd)
Mr PS Haokip is a influential person in Kuki society and he had/has an influential group. He went around many times to cover Chin in Myanmar, Mizoram and Chhitagong hills tract in Bangladesh, where he and his friends zealously talked about the establishment of a Kuki land which shall include parts of these three countries. His head quarter is located at Churcahandpur which he calls Lamka. “The Zale’n Gam” and “The Zo Land” are some of the important books of Mr PS Haokip and his party. He is now President of Kuki National Organisation (KNO). He says Kuki is just like an eagle which is the top carnivorous animal in food chain in an ecosystem. Eagle is the strongest carnivorous bird, no bird can fight with eagle and all birds run away from eagle. In the same manner, he opined that Kuki is like eagle, they are not afraid of any ethnic group or the Government of India, Myanmar, and Bangladesh.
He said the word “Zale’n” means free flight of an eagle which is equivalent to the meaning of Freedom and Sovereignty. He did not mention the meaning of “Gam”. The meaning of Gam is not found the English dictionary. The meaning of gam which no English Dictionary explains, is meant the “ Manipur Hill Areas (Acquisition of Chiefs Right) Act- 1966”. The Act very nicely defines “Gam” as a tract of land in hill area held by a chief. Then what is the meaning of “Chief” and how many Chiefs are there in Manipur, who and when Chiefs are elected or nominated, many questions arise now. The notorious Kuki can establish any village anywhere in Manipur covering any number of Gam(s) thereby appointing Chiefs and Deputy Chiefs at any time under this Act.
This very Act of 1966 is now become a favorite tool/weapons for Kuki to occupy land in Manipur. With this very Act, Kukis are encroaching on forest lands in Manipur forming Gam(s) and Chiefs. This process had been going on continuously on the soil of Manipur.
The Act originates from the Chin hill of Myanmar (erstwhile Burma). A similar Act in Myanmar and Chieftainship in chin hill of Myanmar was abolished by Myanmar Government long back. The Assam Government had also abolished “Assam Lushai Hill District (Acquisition of Chiefs’ Right) Act – 1954”. Hence, this draconian Act is removed and abolished in the place of its origin, but it is still in practise in Manipur. Now, there is need of cancellation/abolishing of this Act in Manipur also.
92% of Manipur’s land is classified as Hill area and 8% of it is classified as valley area. Again 2% of valley area is water bodies and wetland ecosystem and the inhabitable area in the valley region is only 6%. Again 80% of State population thrive in valley region, it is congested.
This congested fertile land is targeted by the Kuki chiefs to occupy by any means. Their dream of occupying this fertile congested area was already initiated by the Kuki Chiefs since 1980, at their meeting convened with an agenda on the Penetration to Imphal valley. Hence, the violence which started on the 03rd May, 2023 was not immediate start on that day only, but it was explosion of conspiracy bomb which was seeded / planted in the mind of the Kuki Chiefs, intellectuals since 1980, it was a spontaneous and continuous process for formation of Zale’n Gam (the Kuki Nation/Zo Nation ) since then.
Manipur has got a land law under and name and style of “Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms Act– 1960”. The land law is operational in only 8% of the State valley land and 92% of the hill land has got no land law. People living in the 8% of the valley land are given ownership of the land by giving land documents like Dag-chitha and Patta. When there is land dispute the Revenue Department settles the dispute by referring to the land records.
People living in the 92% of State’s hill land is the “Manipur Hill Areas (Acquisition of Chiefs Right) Act- 1966”. There is no demarcation of land under this Act and hence there are no Dag-chitha and patta. Demarcations of land in Hill are lump sum. There is a term “gam” under this Chiefs’ Right Act -1966 which has no geographical size of the land. The word gam is not found in any English Dictionary. But, the very Act defined that the Gam means a tract of land in hill area held by a Chief. There can be unlimited gam(s) in hill area of Manipur. There is another term “Chief” who is the head of the gam. The Chief has the supreme power of the Gam area which has no limitation in geographical size. The Chief has the supreme power of bringing in anybody into the gam or expel out anybody from the gam. The poor Kuki individuals/families are at the mercy of the chiefs. This Act is very much liked by the Kuki Chiefs and favorable Act of the Kuki chiefs. (To be contd)