Defying boycott call, Manipur CM attends BJP MLA’s funeral: ‘Dialogue only way forward’

MAnipur chief government minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh on sabbatum visited the Kuki-majority Churachandpur territory to go to the endure rites of BJP MLA Vungzagin Valte, despite a boycott call by several Kuki civil society organisations.Singh travelled to the district by helicopter amid protests and road blockades. His visit marked the first by a sitting chief minister to Churachandpur since ethnic violence erupted between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities in May 2023.CM pays tribute to BJP MLAThe CM described Valte as “a very calm person” and recalled their close association since 2017, when he became Speaker of the Manipur Assembly.Reflecting on the attack on May 4, 2023, Singh said, “My deepest regret is that on that particular afternoon, if I were with him, that incident would not have taken place.”“Today, I came here for a short visit to pay my last respects to my friend Pu Valte. To be able to attend it is a huge honour for me. Valte’s family is like my family. His friends and close ones are my friends too. I will always extend any support to all of them when or if the need arises,” he added.Valte's funeral held after months-long delayValte, 61, a BJP legislator from Thanlon constituency and a former minister from the Zomi community in the previous government headed by N Biren Singh, had suffered critical injuries in a mob attack in Imphal on May 4, 2023. He remained wheelchair-bound before dying at Medanta Hospital in Gurugram on February 21 this year after nearly two years of treatment. His family and Kuki-Zo organisations had refused to conduct his funeral for months, demanding the arrest of those responsible for the attack.“The family has finally decided to cremate him because the MLA’s wife is unwell and she wished for her husband to be laid to rest. For all these months, the body was kept in the mortuary because police have not arrested anyone for his murder,” a family member, requesting anonymity, said.Valte was among the 10 Kuki-Zo legislators demanding a “separate administration” for the hill areas after the outbreak of the ethnic conflict. He had also served as an adviser to the former CM N Biren Singh.Kuki organisations opposed CM's visitAhead of the visit, the Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM), the apex Kuki civil body, cautioned the chief minister against travelling to Churachandpur, saying the situation in the district remained “highly sensitive and volatile”.In a separate joint statement issued on July 3, six Kuki civil society organisations (KCSOs) said, “The KCSOs Churachandpur would like to make it clear that until and unless there is a solution to the ongoing ‘Kuki-Zo-Meitei conflict’ we would not allow any Meitei individual, officials or group in our district, be it the chief minister.”The organisations also warned that “any untoward incident arising out of his visit will solely be his responsibility.”CM repeats call for dialogueLater, while interacting with media persons, the CM said that dialogue is the only way forward to restore peace in Manipur and stressed that lasting peace is essential for the overall development of the state.School bus stopped in Kangpokpi by protestorsA group of protestors on Saturday allegedly stopped a school bus in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district, officials said.According to officials, the incident took place at around 7.30 am near Ex-Servicemen Colony when a bus carrying 30 students towards Kendriya Vidyalaya, Leimakhong, Kangpokpi district, was stopped by protestors of Kuki mass rally.The Kukis have been demanding for free movement in NH-2 and justice for six Naga civilians who were allegedly killed by Kuki militants after their abduction on May 13.