Tensions Escalate in Manipur as Protesters Clash with Security Forces

Tensions rose in strife-torn Manipur on Saturday as thousands of protesters demanding lasting peace clashed with security forces after being stopped from marching towards the chief minister Y Khemchand Singh's residence in Imphal. The state, which has been grappling with ethnic violence for nearly three years, witnessed fresh unrest as demonstrators attempted to push through barricades.

The protests were organised under the banner of the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), with agitators taking out four separate rallies from different parts of the city. However, all processions were halted at key locations, including Keisampat junction, Kangla Gate, Konung Mamang and Moirangkhom, as heavy security deployment blocked access to the chief minister’s bungalow in the Babupara area. At Khurai Lamlong, around 2 km from the CM’s residence, the situation turned volatile when protesters tried to breach barricades. Security forces responded by firing several rounds of tear gas shells to disperse the crowd, officials said. Despite the confrontation, a small group of representatives was later allowed to meet the chief minister, where they submitted a memorandum outlining their demands.

Protesters raised slogans and carried placards seeking justice for a five-year-old boy and a six-month-old girl killed in a recent bomb blast in Bishnupur district. The children and their mother were asleep when the explosion ripped through the room, leaving the mother injured. They also demanded rehabilitation and support for internally displaced persons affected by the prolonged ethnic conflict. COCOMI convenor Y K Dhiren said after the meeting that the agitation would intensify if concrete steps were not taken. He alleged that there has been no meaningful resolution to the crisis since violence first erupted on May 3, 2023. COCOMI spokesperson Nahakpam Shanta Singh said the group is seeking an action taken report from the state government on the death of two children in a bomb blast at Tronglaobi on April 7. "Along with that, we have raised several other demands. If the government fails to answer, we would be compelled to pursue other democratic forms of agitation," he said.

The protests come amid a fresh spike in violence in the state. Earlier on Friday, three people, including a Tangkhul Naga and two Kuki-Zo individuals were killed in separate gunfights between rival armed groups in Ukhrul district. At least five others, including women, were injured in the clashes. The Tangkhul Naga Long (TNL) said a 29-year-old man, Horshokmi Jamang, was killed in an ambush by armed Kuki militants while patrolling near Sinakeithei village. Meanwhile, the two Kuki deceased, whose bodies were found by security forces near Mullam village in the district, have been identified as Paominlun Haolai (19) and Letlal Sitlhou (43). The Kuki groups claimed that besides the two Kuki village volunteers being killed, 17 houses were burnt, several villagers were injured, and many others, including women and children, were displaced. Adding to the complexity, a faction of the NSCN (Aleng Group) claimed it had killed five cadres of Myanmar-based Kuki National Army-Burma (KNA-B) in Kamjong district. However, there has been no official confirmation of this claim, and the KNA-B has dismissed related allegations as "baseless and false."

Earlier this week, a seven-kilometre-long torch rally was also taken out from Mayai Lambi to Keishamthong in Imphal West district over the killing of the two children in the bomb blast at Tronglaobi. However, the situation escalated when participants turned aggressive and confronted security personnel, a police officer earlier told TOI. Security forces fired multiple rounds of tear gas in the Keishamthong area after hundreds of protesters, defying curfew, demanded permission to march an additional 200 metres towards Keisampat, near the Lok Bhavan and the BJP state office, he added. The ongoing conflict between the Imphal Valley-based Meiteis and hill-based Kukis has so far claimed over 260 lives and displaced thousands. Fresh data obtained through an RTI reveals that 58,881 people remain internally displaced as of March 30, 2026, highlighting the scale of the humanitarian crisis.