Imphal: The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) has temporarily suspended its planned agitation against the North Eastern Council’s (NEC) Vision Document 2047, which incorrectly referred to Manipur as a “Chin Kuki State.” This decision followed assurances from the Manipur state government that the issue would be thoroughly investigated with the intervention of the Central Government.
At a press conference held at COCOMI’s Lamphel Office on Wednesday, COCOMI Coordinator Thokchom Somorendro revealed that Chief Minister N. Biren Singh had already submitted a formal letter to the Minister of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), requesting a comprehensive inquiry into the erroneous reference. COCOMI has called for the establishment of an enquiry committee to address this and other similar mistakes, which they argue pose a threat to the identity, integrity, and territorial boundaries of Manipur.
In addition to addressing the NEC document issue, COCOMI reiterated its firm stance on the Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement with 25 Kuki militant groups. The organization contends that these militants, who are allegedly fighting to establish an independent state in Myanmar and Bangladesh, should not be included in the SoO. COCOMI urged the Central Government to align with the state government in abrogating the SoO agreement.
Somorendro warned that ignoring the sentiments of the people could lead to widespread public unrest. He also raised concerns about the legitimacy of these militant groups, pointing to the alleged involvement of Kuki militants from neighboring countries in the ongoing ethnic conflicts in Manipur.
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