By Dharmesh Prajapati

Three injured Kuki-Zo youths, who were brought to the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Imphal by security forces after sustaining bullet wounds in a suspected gunfight on Monday, were evacuated in a high-security midnight operation on Wednesday following two days of sustained demonstrations by Meitei and Naga protestors, reported news agency PTI.

The admission of the patients, whom Kuki groups identified as “village volunteers” and protestors labelled as “militants”, led to outrage, particularly among the Naga community following the recent abduction and killing of six residents from Konsakhul village.

The standoff ended past midnight on Wednesday, June 17, when heavily escorted ambulances bypassed the stone-pelting demonstrators to transfer the patients 60 kilometres away to a district hospital in Kuki-Zo-majority Churachandpur.

The crisis began on the morning of Monday, June 15, near Leilon Vaiphei, an area bordered by a Naga village, Konsakhul. According to a report by the news agency, PTI, an exchange of fire exchange of fire suspected to have been between Kuki-Zo and Naga groups in Kangpokpi district left three Kuki youths injured. They were later identified as Genlenmang Vaiphei, aged 18, Lunliandaw Vaiphei, aged 20, and Paogou Lal, aged 18.

According to PTI, one of the three injured is reportedly a footballer for the Kolkata-based football club, Mohun Bagan. Kuki groups identified the men as “village volunteers”, an informal term used in Manipur to refer to armed men stationed in their villages, reported The Indian Express.

Because of the severity of their gunshot wounds, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and the Indian Army transferred them from 183 Military Hospital, Leimakhong to RIMS in Imphal West, reported PTI. One senior police official told the Indian Express that RIMS was the only place with the required equipment to treat their injuries.

MEITI AND NAGA PROTESTORS BLOCKADE RIMS HOSPITAL

The arrival of the Kuki patients at RIMS on Monday quickly drew furious crowds of Meiti and Naga protestors to the hospital gates.

While tensions between the Meiti and Kuki-Zo communities have been shimmering since 2023, those between the Kuki-Zo and Naga communities were recently inflamed by the May 13 abduction and subsequent killing of six Naga residents from Konsakhul, whose bodies were recovered on June 10, The Indian Express reported. The abductions took place in Leilon Vaiphei, the same place where the three Kuki youths were injured.

The demonstrators claimed that the injured youths were militants and questioned whether similar security arrangements would be provided for ordinary citizens travelling through Kuki-majority areas of Kangpokpi district, reported PTI.

Julia Shinglai, a member of the Foothills Naga Coordination Committee, told The Indian Express that members of the Kuki-Zo community were receiving “special treatment” at the expense of others.

“We are very disappointed with how the government in giving special treatment to the Kukis. Their sick is escorted to Imphal for treatment or to the airport when our movement is limited within certain areas. If they want treatment, let them get it in Kangpokpi or Churachandpur,” Shinglai said.

Speaking to news agency ANI, TP Dining, Assembly Affairs Secretary of the All Naga Students’ Association, accused both the state and central governments of ignoring the sufferings of the Naga community while rushing to assist Kuki-Zo individuals.

“When our six innocent brothers were killed by Kukis, the government of Manipur, the government of India, and the security forces failed to deploy on time,” Dining told ANI, adding, “There must be some reason behind the relationship between the government of Manipur and the Kuki community, why did they bring them safely?… The Indian security forces are willing and ready to bring the three Kuki militants to the RIMS in Imphal.”

SECURITY FORCES FIRE TEAR GAS, LAUNCH LATHICHARGE

As the crowds swelled, PTI reported that attempts were made to storm the building to seize the patients. In response, security forces fired tear gas shells and launched lathicharge in an attempt to disperse the protestors.

This heavy-handed response within a medical zone drew sharp criticism from the hospital administration. A statement issued by the hospital’s media cell, reported by PTI, read, “RIMS strongly condemns the firing of mock bombs and smoke bombs within the hospital premises following the large-scale public protest that occurred yesterday. The institute expresses grave concern over the potential risks posed by such actions to patients, attendants, healthcare personnel, and the public. Any activity that may compromise safety within the premises is a matter of serious concern and must be strictly avoided.”

Defending the rights of the patients, Thangtinlen Haokip, a member of the Kangpokpi-based Committee on Tribal Unity, condemned the blockade, stating to The Indian Express, “This is a very terrible and unacceptable situation. RIMS is not for any particular community, but we have people saying that people from one particular community cannot go and take treatment there, and putting unwell and injured people in danger.”

MIDNIGHT EVACUATION TO CHURACHANDPUR

By Tuesday night, June 16, the situation deteriorated further as protestors pelted security forces with stones, insisting the patients be handed over. Recognising the imminent threat to the hospital and the patients, authorities coordinated a high-security midnight evacuation.

At midnight on Wednesday, June 17, heavily escorted ambulances forced their way through the remaining crowds outside RIMS. PTI reported that the three injured youths were successfully transferred 60 kilometers away to the district hospital in the Kuki-Zo-majority district of Churachandpur.

Reacting to the forced relocation, Janghoulun Haokip, the information secretary of Kuki Inpi Manipur, expressed dismay over the denial of healthcare access, telling Indian Express that “It is very unfortunate that this has happened and that people have pushed to deny access to critical medical facilities to them.”

The standoff at RIMS hospital marks another chapter in the intermittent violence that has engulfed Manipur since 2023, with at least 260 people killed and thousands displaced in the conflict between the Meitei and Kuki communities, which has now also drawn in the Naga community.