UKHRUL, NOV 22: The Kuki Human Rights Council (KHRC) has called on ten Kuki MLAs in Manipur to step down from the Assembly, saying their resignations are necessary to push the community’s demand for a Separate Administration.
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In a statement issued on Saturday, the council said the MLAs — Letpao Haokip, Nemcha Kipgen, Kimneo Hangshing, Vungzagin Varte, Lallianmang Khaute, Chinlunthang Manlun, Paolienlal Haokip, Ngusanglur Sanate, Letzamang Haokip and Haokholet Kipgen — “must take a clear stand” at a time when the community continues to reel from the ethnic violence that began in May 2023.
The KHRC argued that remaining in the Assembly sends the wrong message to the Kuki public, who, it said, expect their elected leaders to back the push for a separate administrative set-up. “The community wants action, not statements,” the council said.
The rights group also referred to the heavy casualties and displacement suffered during the violence, saying the wounds “still run deep.” It maintained that the Kuki and Meitei communities have been living separately since the 2023 conflict and that the MLAs have a responsibility to reflect that reality in their political decisions.
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According to the KHRC, the resignations would signal unity and strengthen ongoing demands for a political arrangement that guarantees the community’s security and rights. It urged the legislators to “put the people’s interests first” and warned that the Kuki public would judge them on the choices they make now.