Nagaland: NSCN-IM Claims Indian Forces are Using Kuki Rebels for Proxy War

KOHIMA: The NSCN-IM has claimed that the Indian government is fighting its military wing indirectly by using the Kuki National Army – Myanmar (KNA-B) and the People’s Defense Force (PDF).

The claim comes during the ongoing conflicts and fights between the Meiteis and Kuki-Zo groups in Manipur, leading to many casualties on both sides.

The NSCN-IM said that it is staying out of the conflicts in Manipur to concentrate on talks with the government. But the National Investigation Agency (NIA) claims that the NSCN-IM is actually making the Meitei-Kuki conflict worse by backing the Meitei rebel group against the Kuki militants.

The NSCN has strong denied these accusations, criticizing the Indian security forces like the Assam Rifles and Para Regiment. They accuse these forces of working with the Kuki militants.

The NSCN-IM also criticized the NIA for falsely claiming their involvement in the Meitei-Kuki Zo conflict.

As per the banned outfit, this collaboration has created a war-like situation along the India-Myanmar border. They said that AR and Para Regime unit are helping Kuki militants, especially the KNA-B, with movements and operations.

The local villagers have said that they have seen Assam Rifles personnel moving Kuki militants to and from the border. This has raised concerns about the security forces’ involvement in the ongoing conflict, according to the outfit.

The NSCN-IM in a statement said that the KNA-B is given unrestrained access to border crossing points to Myanmar and allowed to come out anytime, while others are strictly forbidden. They also mentioned that such is the deceitful role of Indian Security Forces magnifying the problem instead of finding a solution.

Meanwhile, a new report from the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre in Geneva says that ethnic violence in Manipur, which began on May 3, 2023, has forced 67,000 people in the state to leave their homes.

The report states that displacement linked to conflict and violence has risen in other parts of the region, primarily due to increasing communal tensions in Manipur, a northeastern state of India.

These tensions were largely triggered by the state's high court requesting recommendations in March to be sent to the central government to recognize the Meitei community as a "scheduled tribe," an official status aimed at safeguarding minorities from marginalization.

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