In a press conference, COCOMI convenor Khuraijam Athouba stated the report was “engineered” to advance a separatist agenda. He challenged its claims about the outbreak of violence and what he called a “patently false” assertion regarding a High Court directive on Meitei Scheduled Tribe status.
BY PC Bureau
August 26, 2025: The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) has strongly rejected the recent report by the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), calling it “biased, misleading, and politically motivated.”
In a press conference held at its office, COCOMI convenor Khuraijam Athouba stated that a thorough review of the Independent People’s Tribunal (IPT) report concluded that it does not contribute to peace or justice. Instead, he alleged, it “emboldens narco-terrorist groups” and threatens national security.
Athouba described the report as “engineered and structured to advance separatist agendas.” He claimed its content was characterized by bias, selective omissions, and fabrications. He specifically challenged the report’s assertion that the Manipur High Court had directed the state government to recommend Scheduled Tribe (ST) status for the Meitei community, a claim he labeled as “patently false” and contradicted by the former Chief Justice.
COCOMI also contested the report’s timeline of the violence, arguing that evidence shows Meitei homes were first attacked in Torbung-Kangvai, Churachandpur, with retaliation in Imphal occurring later. Athouba criticized the report for framing Kukis as the sole victims and ignoring attacks on Meiteis. He dismissed the report’s finding of a “de facto ethnic partition” as an echo of separatist narratives designed to legitimize demands for a separate administration.
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Furthermore, Athouba criticized the report for downplaying the role of Kuki-Chin armed groups while repeatedly naming Meitei organizations. He pointed to the omission of groups like ITLF and Kuki Inpi as evidence of the report’s bias. He also rejected the report’s justification of poppy cultivation as poverty-driven and condemned what he called fabricated historical claims that portrayed Meiteis as anti-Indian.
In response, COCOMI announced plans to hold a public review of the report and consult with legal experts to determine its next course of action. Athouba stated that PUCL and its members “must be held legally accountable for every baseless statement.” The committee reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding Manipur’s integrity and unity against what it described as fabricated reports designed for international audiences and separatist propaganda.
