Latest news with #CoordinatingCommitteeonManipurIntegrity
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
COCOMI seeks safety zone for farmers
Imphal: The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) has called for the immediate declaration of a 'Farmer Safety Zone' with shoot-at-sight orders in vulnerable agrarian areas following the attack on a farmer on Thursday. Ningthoujam Biren Singh, a local farmer, was shot at near an SSB security post at Phubala in Manipur's Bishnupur district. The attack reportedly took place after an alleged breach through three layers of security, including BSF, JKLI and SSB personnel. COCOMI termed the act as "a targeted and deliberate attempt to terrorise farmers, disrupt agricultural activities, and destabilise peace in the valley region".
The Hindu
7 hours ago
- The Hindu
COCOMI demands 'farmer safety zone' in Imphal Valley periphery areas
Meitei body COCOMI on Saturday (June 21, 2025) demanded a 'farmer safety zone' in the periphery areas of Imphal Valley, two days after a farmer was injured in a gun attack in Bishnupur district. The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) also demanded shoot-at-sight orders in the periphery areas of the valley to deal with any unauthorised armed intruder, especially those carrying assault rifles or deadly firearms. Also read | Manipur districts tense after day of violence Strongly condemning the gun attack, COCOMI, in a statement, said, "Ningthoujam Biren Singh was shot from point-blank range barely 30 meters away from the SSB security line. This act of terror occurred after an outrageous breach through three tiers of security — BSF, Army, and SSB — raising serious concerns about the intent, efficiency, and reliability of the current security deployment in the valley." "A COCOMI team held a meeting with the Bishnupur superintendent of police, followed by a strategic security dialogue at police headquarters with senior officers including ADGP L Kailun and IGP K Kabib," it said. COCOMI stands in full solidarity with local farmer groups and the victim's family and demands a declaration of a 'farmer safety zone' with shoot-at-sight orders, it said. "The entire agrarian belt along the foothills and canal zones must be officially designated as a 'farmer safety zone' and must be declared a 'no arms zone', and any unauthorised armed intruder, especially those carrying assault rifles or deadly weapons, must face immediate shoot-at-sight orders," COCOMI said. COCOMI also called for guarantee to "uninterrupted cultivation access" and to allow farmers to cultivate paddy fields of the Meiteis up to the foothill areas without fear or obstruction. It also demanded the deployment of two to three additional companies of security forces for regular mobile patrolling while maintaining all existing static posts to ensure round-the-clock surveillance of sensitive farming zones. The farmer was shot at on Thursday afternoon while he was working in the fields in Phubala in the valley district of Bishnupur after armed men allegedly opened fire from the surrounding hills, officials said. Farmers, who were working with him, claimed that the shots were fired from the nearby hills, they said. Located on the periphery of the Imphal Valley, the vast farmlands of Phubala are surrounded by the hills in the Churachandpur district on one side. Protesting the incident, locals called a shutdown in Phubala. The movement of security forces was blocked in some areas of the district, they said. Over 260 people have been killed after ethnic clashes broke out between the Meiteis, who live in the valley, and Kukis, who dominate the surrounding hills, in May 2023.
Hindustan Times
8 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Manipur: COCOMI demands 'farmer safety zone' in Imphal Valley periphery areas
Imphal, Meitei body COCOMI on Saturday demanded a 'farmer safety zone' in the periphery areas of Imphal Valley, two days after a farmer was injured in a gun attack in Bishnupur district. Manipur: COCOMI demands 'farmer safety zone' in Imphal Valley periphery areas The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity also demanded shoot-at-sight orders in the periphery areas of the valley to deal with any unauthorised armed intruder, especially those carrying assault rifles or deadly firearms. Strongly condemning the gun attack, COCOMI, in a statement, said, "Ningthoujam Biren Singh was shot from point-blank range barely 30 meters away from the SSB security line. This act of terror occurred after an outrageous breach through three tiers of security BSF, Army, and SSB raising serious concerns about the intent, efficiency, and reliability of the current security deployment in the valley." "A COCOMI team held a meeting with the Bishnupur superintendent of police, followed by a strategic security dialogue at police headquarters with senior officers including ADGP L Kailun and IGP K Kabib," it said. COCOMI stands in full solidarity with local farmer groups and the victim's family and demands a declaration of a 'farmer safety zone' with shoot-at-sight orders, it said. "The entire agrarian belt along the foothills and canal zones must be officially designated as a 'farmer safety zone' and must be declared a 'no arms zone', and any unauthorised armed intruder, especially those carrying assault rifles or deadly weapons, must face immediate shoot-at-sight orders," COCOMI said. COCOMI also called for guarantee to "uninterrupted cultivation access" and to allow farmers to cultivate paddy fields of the Meiteis up to the foothill areas without fear or obstruction. It also demanded the deployment of two to three additional companies of security forces for regular mobile patrolling while maintaining all existing static posts to ensure round-the-clock surveillance of sensitive farming zones. The farmer was shot at on Thursday afternoon while he was working in the fields in Phubala in the valley district of Bishnupur after armed men allegedly opened fire from the surrounding hills, officials said. Farmers, who were working with him, claimed that the shots were fired from the nearby hills, they said. Located on the periphery of the Imphal Valley, the vast farmlands of Phubala are surrounded by the hills in the Churachandpur district on one side. Protesting the incident, locals called a shutdown in Phubala. The movement of security forces was blocked in some areas of the district, they said. Over 260 people have been killed after ethnic clashes broke out between the Meiteis, who live in the valley, and Kukis, who dominate the surrounding hills, in May 2023. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Indian Express
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
‘In 3 months of President's Rule in Manipur, every attempt to restore peace has failed, those against it not held liable': COCOMI
The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), the umbrella body of the Meitei groups, has supported the move for government formation in the state. A day after the outfit held talks with the Union Home Ministry in Delhi over a row brewing on the covering up of 'Manipur' name on a state transport bus, its convenor Khuraijam Athouba told The Indian Express that the administration under President's Rule has not been able to restore peace nor punish those who disturbed it. In an interview, he also talked about the new row over which it announced a state-wide agitation starting May 25, and has demanded an apology from Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla, and the removal of Chief Secretary Prashant Kumar Singh, DGP Rajiv Singh and Security Advisor Kuldiep Singh. Excerpts: * Why have you hit the streets over the alleged covering up of the word 'Manipur' on a state transport bus by security forces? This May 20 incident is widely seen as an insult to the identity of the state by the state administration… The top administrators in the state right now – as it is under President's Rule – are the Chief Secretary, DGP and the Security Advisor. If that incident happened under some kind of instruction, the three of them must have knowledge of it. So, we hold them responsible and demanded their replacement… The Governor is the head of the state… So, he should take moral responsibility and we sought an apology from him… There was notification of the constitution of an inquiry committee… but it is not an independent inquiry as it (will be supervised by) the Chief Secretary… We could not get any positive response from the government's side. So, we had to intensify the agitation. * How was your meeting with Home Ministry officials on Tuesday? The meeting was earlier to be held ahead of our May 3 'People's Convention'. But because of Operation Sindoor – the entire nation stood with the government against terrorism – we held it back and extended our solidarity, waiting for the right time. By the time we met on Tuesday, the incident of May 20 had happened. So we included it in our agenda. We told Home Ministry officials that there should be some action from the government's side… We are waiting for the government's response. Hopefully we will see some decisions. * Ten Manipur MLAs met the Governor Wednesday claiming the support of 44 legislators to form a government. Are you in touch with these MLAs? We are not as such, but are planning to hold talks with MLAs regarding the resolutions we adopted so that there can be a unanimous voice before the Centre and an early settlement to the crisis… The MLAs are on the side of the people. However, the general feeling is that they are not doing enough, and have left matters to the civil society rather than functioning as people's representatives. * Do you think President's Rule should be lifted in Manipur and a popular government restored? Yes. The recent incident also shows that President's Rule is an alien administration. They don't understand the state's history and its identity; how the people are sensitive about it. The lack of that kind of understanding creates issues. They are unable to relate to the people. So, President's Rule is not a good choice. We have had bitter experiences with President's Rule in the past as well. If you remember 2001, the Assembly was burnt down during President's Rule… The government was not able to cope with the long-drawn crisis (since May 2023) and so thought of handing over things to the Centre… But after three months of President's Rule, there are no visible results. Every attempt to restore peace has failed, and those against peace have not been held liable. They haven't been punished, controlled or contained. * Has any effort been made to initiate talks with the Kuki side? No, not as of now, as the sane voices among Kuki civilians are yet to come forward. They are completely controlled by armed militant groups, who are solely responsible for this crisis. At Tuesday's meeting too, we told the Home Ministry that it is very important that the government control and contain all the elements trying to disrupt or suppress the voice of innocent civilians on the Kuki and Meitei side as well. We should help these voices emerge. If the government is able to control the separatists, we will also extend our support to talks for reconciliation and restoration of peace and normalcy in the state. We are waiting for that. * In case a popular government does take over, who could be the possible CM? It is difficult for us to comment on that… There are many people who want to become Chief Minister. I don't know what their (motivation) is. Are they trying to prove themselves capable of resolving the crisis, or are they just driven by hunger for power? * One concern of the Centre is that a large portion of the looted weapons and ammunition have not been surrendered yet. As per a government report, 5,000-plus arms have been recovered, most of them from the (Meitei-dominated) Valley. The hill volunteers and armed groups have openly defied the call of the government asking for surrender of arms. Despite this defiance by organisations and village volunteers, the government has not taken any counter-measure. This has created an apprehension in the minds of Valley people about whether surrendering of arms is the right thing or not… This is not conducive.
Scroll.in
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Scroll.in
Manipur: Meitei protesters lock Union government offices in Imphal
The student wing of Meitei civil society group Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity on Tuesday intensified its protest against the Manipur administration by locking two Union government offices in Imphal, reported The Telegraph. This came in response to the May 20 incident when the words 'Manipur State Transport' were covered on a state-run bus. Protesters locked the offices of the chief electoral officer and the Geological Survey of India in Imphal West and demanded an apology from Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla. They alsonheld placards that said 'Apology to Manipur or Leave Manipur' and 'President's Rule must stop insulting Manipur's identity'. This was part of the group's broader campaign against Union government bodies. Tuesday marked the third consecutive day of protests. On May 20, central security forces allegedly stopped a group of 20 journalists in Imphal East district and directed them to hide the 'Manipur State Transport' sign on the government bus they were travelling in. The incident occurred at the Gwaltabi checkpoint in Imphal East while the group was travelling to cover the Shirui Lily Festival, a cultural event organised by the state tourism department, in the Naga-majority Ukhrul district. The route to the district passes through several Kuki villages. The team initially tried to comply with the direction. However, delays due to negotiations with the security forces forced them to cancel the trip and return to Imphal. The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity had said at the time that the actions of the security personnel seemed like a deliberate attempt to undermine the authority and legitimacy of the Manipur government within its territory. After the incident, public outrage further intensified in the state following reports that the governor was flown by an Army helicopter from the Imphal airport to Kangla Fort – which is only 300 metres from the Raj Bhavan – in order to bypass road blockades by protesters on Monday, The Telegraph reported. Manipur has been mired in ethnic clashes between the Meiteis and Kuki-Zo-Hmar communities that have killed at least 260 persons and displaced more than 59,000 persons since May 2023. There were periodic upticks in violence in 2024. President's Rule was imposed in February this year after Chief Minister N Biren Singh resigned. Bhalla has been administering Manipur since then.
