Manipur: Case Registered Against Meitei Leepun Chief for 'Promoting Enmity'

The complaint, filed by a Kuki students' group, cites statements made by Pramot Singh in his interview with Karan Thapar and tweets that he posted before the ethnic clashes began in Manipur.

Meitei Leepun chief Pramot Singh. Photo: The Wire

The Wire, 13 July 2023, New Delhi: Based on a complaint filed by a Kuki students’ group, a case has been registered against Pramot Singh, the chief of the Meitei Leepun group that is accused of instigating violence in Manipur, for promoting enmity.

According to The Hindu, the complaint was filed by the Kuki Students Organisation (KSO) on June 13 but the case was registered only on July 8 at the Kangpokpi police station. The first information report (FIR) invokes charges such as criminal conspiracy, promoting enmity between groups, intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace and criminal intimidation, among others.

The complaint filed by the KSO mentions statements made by Singh in an interview with Karan Thapar for The Wire on June 6. Statements such as “Kukis are outsiders who are not indigenous to Manipur” have been cited, according to The Hindu. It also notes that Singh accepted that the Meitei Leepun was training people to use arms and warned that there “will be a civil war and the Kukis will not be able to defend themselves”. The complaint also cited tweets that Singh or the Meitei Leepun had posted, which it says instigated violence.

Meitei Leepun and Arambai Tenggol have been accused by Kuki groups of instigating violence in Manipur. The groups deny this allegation.

Singh told The Hindu that he was not aware of the FIR and that he is “not bothered” by it.

The ethnic clashes between the Meitei and Kuki communities in Manipur, which have been ongoing since May 3, have claimed more than 140 lives and displaced more than 50,000 people.

Three Kukis – a leading academic and two activists – have been summoned by an Imphal court for statements they made in interviews with Karan Thapar. The three are University of Hyderabad professor Kham Khan Suan Hausing; the convenor of the Kuki Women’s Forum Mary Grace Zou; and the general secretary of the Kuki People’s Alliance Wilson Lalam Hangshing.