IMPHAL, Sept 15: Representatives of COCOMI, an umbrella body of Imphal valley-
based civil society organisations, met defence minister Rajnath Singh and
demanded the withdrawal of Assam Rifles from the state, alleging that the force
was acting in a biased way.
The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), which represents
Meitei groups, said in a statement that their representatives met Singh on
Thursday at his residence in Delhi and submitted a memorandum.
In the memorandum, they claimed that the Kuki groups caused embarrassment to
the government by approaching the United Nations for a resolution to the
Manipur crisis.
They also raised with Singh the issues of narco-terrorism, illegal immigrants and
their identification as well as suspension of operations agreement, the statement
said.
On the other side, the Kuki groups have been accusing the state police of bias.
Last month, 10 Kuki MLAs of the state appealed to PM Narendra Modi to not
withdraw Assam Rifles from the state, maintaining that this could jeopardise the
security of the tribals.
Around 175 people have been killed and 1,100 injured since ethnic violence broke
out in Manipur on May 3, when a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ was organised in the
hill districts to protest against the majority Meitei community’s demand for
Scheduled Tribe status. (PTI)
