Calling the year-long conflict a “devastating civil war,” the Congress urged the Centre to initiate dialogue and reconciliation to restore peace and trust among communities.
BY PC Bureau
In a renewed call for peace in strife-torn Manipur, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi convened a high-level meeting with party leaders from the state on Thursday at the new AICC headquarters in Indira Bhavan, New Delhi. The focus: pushing for an immediate political solution to the ethnic violence that has ravaged the state for nearly two years.
The meeting comes as the Congress intensifies pressure on the BJP-led central government to intervene meaningfully in the deepening crisis. Ethnic clashes between the Meitei and Kuki communities since May 2023 have resulted in more than 200 deaths, the displacement of over 60,000 people, and the destruction of homes, places of worship, and infrastructure.
Congress General Secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal described the situation as nothing short of a “devastating civil war” and called for urgent political dialogue. “Manipur has been under the grip of a devastating civil war for the last two years. It requires a political solution to bring back normalcy at the earliest,” Venugopal stated on X.
Congress President Shri @kharge today convened a meeting with the Manipur leadership, wherein LoP Shri @RahulGandhi and Congress General Secretary (Org) Shri @kcvenugopalmp attended.
📍 Delhi pic.twitter.com/9FQS6uHk5F
— Congress (@INCIndia) June 5, 2025
Senior party leaders, including Manipur in-charge Saptagiri Ulaka and PCC president Keisham Meghachandra Singh, also participated in the discussion. The Congress leadership reiterated its demand that Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally visit Manipur to understand the gravity of the humanitarian and security crisis.
The party has strongly criticized both the central and state governments for their failure to restore order and build trust between communities. It has called for reconciliation efforts, peace talks, accountability for lapses in law enforcement, and robust rehabilitation measures for displaced families.
At the heart of the conflict is the contentious May 2023 recommendation by the Manipur High Court to consider Scheduled Tribe status for the Meitei community—an order bitterly opposed by Kuki groups. This has triggered a prolonged cycle of retaliatory violence, with reports of fresh attacks continuing into 2025 despite the presence of central forces.
With the state still under duress and the ethnic divide deepening, the Congress has positioned itself as a force demanding both justice and dialogue. Whether the Centre responds with decisive political engagement remains to be seen.
