By PC Bureau
December 11, 2025: In a state still reeling from the ethnic violence that erupted on May 3, 2023, President Droupadi Murmu’s first visit to Manipur since assuming office unfolded under heavy security, a militant-enforced shutdown, and deepening community fractures. Landing in Imphal on Thursday, the President spoke of the “deep scars” left by clashes between the valley-dwelling Meiteis and the hill-based Kuki-Zo tribes—violence that claimed over 260 lives and displaced tens of thousands, mostly from the Kuki-Zo community.
“I am aware of the pain that the people of Manipur have gone through,” she said at a civic reception, pledging that the government “stands by every affected family” and is committed to “ensuring security and rebuilding trust.”
But this means little to the victims. After more than two years of unimaginable trauma, does it help when a leader simply declares awareness of pain endured by people who were raped, killed, and burnt alive? Does it offer healing—or does it land as a cruel mockery?
And what do these assurances of “standing by every affected family” truly amount to? The President should have visited the relief camps—both Kuki-Zo and Meitei—to witness firsthand how hollow these promises feel to people torn from their homes, stripped of dignity, and forced to live like wanderers.
READ: Hrithik Flags Concern About Dhurandhar’s Political Messaging
READ: Manipur Fuel Pumps to Shut After Bomb Threat, Extortion
If the government genuinely stands by the hapless, what has it done to provide food, clean water, clothing, medicine, education, and security? What has it done for the children growing up in those wretched camps, with no roadmap for their future?
Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
With Manipur under President’s Rule, Murmu’s carefully choreographed, symbolism-heavy itinerary feels more like a scripted reassurance tour than a meaningful intervention. By restricting her visit to Imphal—the Meitei heartland—and Senapati, a Naga-majority district largely untouched by the 2023 carnage, she sidestepped the epicenters of Kuki-Zo suffering, reinforcing a familiar pattern: generous rhetoric, scant inclusion.
Selective Solidarity in a Fractured State
Manipur’s ethnic divisions are stark. The Meitei-dominated Imphal Valley holds political and economic sway; Kuki-Zo and Naga tribes inhabit the hills, fighting for autonomy and protection from encroachment. The 2023 clashes—sparked by demands for Scheduled Tribe status—spiraled into arson, killings, and mass displacement. Today, more than 40,000 Kuki-Zo survivors remain in relief camps across Churachandpur, Kangpokpi, and Tengnoupal, battling hunger, trauma, and unanswered pleas for justice, including hundreds of letters to Rashtrapati Bhavan detailing sexual violence.
Murmu’s schedule mirrored these inequities. Day one was entirely in Imphal: a polo exhibition at Mapal Kangjeibung, prayers at Shree Govindajee Temple, and the civic reception where she invoked resilience. Friday was devoted to the Nupi Lal Memorial and project inaugurations in Senapati. Not one visit was made to the devastated Kuki-Zo districts—the true ground zero of the conflict.
Officials described the route as “low-risk, high-symbolism,” a polite euphemism for political and security caution. Analysts saw it as a deliberate calibration: Imphal is secure; Senapati’s Naga leadership is cooperative; Kuki-Zo regions remain volatile—and politically inconvenient.
For the Kuki-Zo community, the omission was doubly painful because Murmu herself is a tribal woman from Odisha. The Kuki-Zo Council extended a “warm welcome” but urged her to meet victims who “continue to suffer.” With no such outreach, hope quickly turned to disappointment. As one commentary noted, her absence “feels less like administrative oversight and more like an expanding gulf of empathy.”
President Droupadi Murmu attended civic reception hosted by the government of Manipur at the City Convention Centre, #Imphal
The President also laid foundation stones and inaugurated various developmental projects on the occasion#Manipur is the gateway to India’s vibrant… pic.twitter.com/hUnPxEWpqy
— PIB India (@PIB_India) December 11, 2025
Assurances Without a Roadmap
Murmu’s language was warm but vague. She spoke of the government’s “highest priority” in addressing grievances and highlighted Manipur’s sporting and cultural heritage—references rooted mainly in Meitei and Naga identities.
But her promises lacked structure:
- How will the state “stand by every affected family” while armed groups roam unchecked?
- What mechanisms will “rebuild trust” when Kuki-Zo complaints—of sexual violence, arson, and forced displacement—remain unaddressed?
- How can displaced families return home amid buffer zones and fears of renewed violence?
The 26 projects she inaugurated—worth ₹1,387 crore across agriculture, electricity, water, sports, and tribal development—sound impressive but are geographically skewed. Concentrated in Imphal and Senapati, they bypass badly affected southern hill districts like Churachandpur. Without clear data on beneficiaries, critics warn these schemes may reinforce the valley-versus-hill divide.
As one analyst noted, “stones laid are not safeguards.” Until funds reach the camps and justice mechanisms activate, development announcements will remain optics—not solutions.
Polarized Reactions: Boycotts, Praise, and Pain
The visit drew sharply divided reactions. The Coordination Committee (CorCom), a Meitei insurgent umbrella, enforced a shutdown, calling the tour a ploy to “suppress people’s aspirations.” Markets in Imphal complied.
Meanwhile, Meitei groups like the World Meetei Council welcomed the visit as a sign of unity and demanded stronger action against “armed Kuki-Zo elements.”
Kuki-Zo responses were polite but uneasy. Some groups extended symbolic invitations to “Kukiland” if Meiteis chose to boycott the visit—a pointed reminder of the widening autonomy movement.
The fractured reactions highlight the symbolic weight—and troubling insufficiency—of Murmu’s tour. Analysts argue that her tribal identity could have been a bridge in this polarised landscape. Instead, the itinerary reinforced perceptions of selective empathy.
President Droupadi Murmu in Manipur-
“I am aware of the pain that people of Manipur have gone through following unfortunate violence.
I want to assure you that taking care of their concerns is highest priority for us.
My Govt stands by every affected family.
The Indian Govt… pic.twitter.com/JoeEjtLNH9
— News Arena India (@NewsArenaIndia) December 11, 2025
For many Kuki-Zo survivors, the omission is deeply personal—a reminder that even the highest office-bearer has avoided confronting their suffering directly.
President Murmu’s Manipur visit, for all its grace, epitomizes a broader Northeast dilemma: elegant speeches overshadowing structural inequities. A genuine path to peace requires more than ceremonial wreaths and project plaques. Until such steps are taken, assurances of “rebuilding trust” will remain aspirational, and Manipur’s famed “resilience” will continue to mask unresolved agony.
For the Kuki-Zo hills, the wait continues—not for polo matches or memorials, but for a President willing to step into the storm.
