Kaybie Chongloi
Shocked and dismayed over the alleged cowardly act of torching houses belonging to Mizo people of Vairengte village and the violent attack perpetrated by the local villagers of Cachar District of Assam inside Mizoram’s Kolasib District, the Kuki Inpi Manipur,KIM the apex body of the Kukis in Manipur, and the Kuki Students’ Organization General Headquarters Manipur, the apex student body of the Kukis in Manipur strongly condemned the incident and urged the Assam Government to initiate appropriate action over the “marauding Bangladeshi immigrants”, so as to restore peace and normalcy in the disputed border areas.
Sominthang Doungel, Vice President (Political Affairs), KIM said, “Kuki Inpi Manipur condemn the dastardly and cowardly act of burning down of houses belonging to our Mizo people of Vairengte village in Mizoram on October 17 by some miscreants on the Assam side of the border.”
He continued that blockade of all commercial roads connecting Mizoram by local people of Assam which led to the interruption of supply of all essentials commodities that too at this time of COVID-19 pandemic also infringe upon the right to our Mizo brethren in Mizoram and is totally against humanitarian laws.
He maintained that the place of incident or part of the area has been the ancestral land of the Mizos before the colonial British annexed the entire Chin Lushai Hills in 1889 and is inclusive when Mizoram attained statehood in 1986 and will not allow anyone to take an inch of our land.
He said that the repeated altercation and arsons due to land disputes could have been avoided had there been proper demarcation of land during the North East Re-organization Act of 1971.
The Kuki Inpi Manipur fervently appeal to the Assam State Government to take appropriate actions against those alleged Bangladeshi miscreants who perpetrated such cases of savagery on our Mizo brethren and to restore peace and normalcy within the disputed border areas, he added.
The KIM Vice President ( Political Affairs) also said, “the Kukis of Manipur stands in solidarity with our Mizo brethren and will extend every possible assistance if need arise.”
Meanwhile, the Kuki Students’ Organization General Headquarters, Manipur said that the student body is perturbed by the unlawful entry and violent attack repeatedly committed by the local villagers of Cachar District of Assam inside Mizoram’s Kolasib District while it is also alarmed by the severity with which the hostility were being carried out on October 17.
The student body recalled that “a farm hut and a betel nut plantation belonging to two Mizoram residents were set on fire by Bangladeshi immigrants from neighbouring Cachar district of Assam state recently.”
It also said that the recent clashes have been triggered by stone pelting by people armed with machetes, iron rods etc. from Lailapur village in Assam’s Cachar District.
Kuki Students’ Organization also wonders if the Assamese Government is covertly supporting the arson and is hand in glove with the Bangladeshi immigrants in its state.
It also said that the subsequent blockage of entry of goods and essential commodities into the state was a gross violation of laws that could hamper the relation between the two states.
While unequivocally condemning the alleged repeated land encroachment and cowardice act, the KSO GHQs also expressed solidarity with its blood brothers Mizos.
The apex student body of the Kukis in Manipur also fervent appeals to the Government of Assam to remove the blockage of entry of goods and settle all contentious issues by democratic and lawful means.
“While applauding our brethren Mizos in protecting their rights over their ancestral lands the KSO GHQ stands together with our blood brothers Mizos against the marauding Bangladeshi immigrants,” it added.