Since the past week, the intensity of fighting has ebbed and flowed in ethnic conflict-hit Manipur where the Army, the paramilitary and the police are maintaining frontline positions to protect the vulnerable communities and to restore law and order.

In following operational procedures, the Assam Rifles and the Manipur Police have occasionally been at loggerheads.

Police have lodged two FIRs against the Assam Rifles at Sugnu police station (2 June) and a suo-motu case at Phougakchow Ikhai police station (5 August) on charges of obstructing the movement of police commandos into areas of conflict.

While a state home department official told ThePrint that there were “aberrations and minor misunderstandings” under tough working conditions, a defence source remarked that “such aberrations should not be taking place”, as there is “enough coordination at higher level, and district level as well”.

“Manipur Police have been professional, and functioning under all constraints,” the home department official said.

Serving personnel of the Manipur Police and the Assam Rifles said all the forces have been working amicably on the ground, except for “lack of communication” in certain cases.

“We have good relations with the police even now. On that particular occasion though, they came without intimation, and the area was not under their jurisdiction. Our intent was to save lives,” said an Assam Rifles trooper, referring to the 5 August incident.

Meanwhile, six FIRs were filed on 11 August by heads of villages from Churachandpur district. The date of occurrence is different for each case (4-5 August), but the nature of complaint remains the same — high-handedness by “miscreants disguised as police commandos”.

“During such an attack (5 August), heavy firing of automated weapons and artillery shells were used by those personnel, endangering the lives of villagers. It further led to an exchange of fire between village guards and perpetrators, which lasted till evening,” reads the FIR, filed on a complaint by the Pholjang village head under Kangvai subdivision. ThePrint has a copy of the FIR.

There’s a total trust deficit between the two forces and they should be brought under an effective integrated system, Lt Gen. Laiphrakpam Nishikanta Singh (Retd) told ThePrint.

“Be it the police or the Assam Rifles — all the forces should be neutral. They cannot take sides. If police are taking the side of Meiteis, it is wrong. And equally wrong would be of Assam Rifles, if it leans towards Kukis. Squabbling among themselves is incorrect. There’s a reason why we wear the uniform,” said Singh. “The structure of unified command has to change. It should be led by the governor, not the advisers. An overall commander could be either the DGP, or the Army commander, or even the security adviser.”

On the frontline, the Manipur Rifles jawan mentioned above said both the forces are doing what is expected of them — save people and restore order.

“We never had a problem with Assam Rifles. We stay close to the Meitei population and they are deployed in Kuki areas. Our primary role is to save lives, and maintain law and order. Every force has Meitei, Kuki and Naga personnel. We follow what the seniors tell us. We only follow ‘hukum’ (order). From where it comes, we don’t know,” he said.

The nearly 34,000-personnel-strong Manipur Police has Meiteis as the largest bloc (55 percent) followed by Kukis (around 30 percent), said the home department official. Pangals (ethnic Muslim Meiteis), Nagas and others make up the rest of the force.

The Manipur Rifles — the armed wing of the Manipur Police — along with the India Reserve Battalion (IRB) assists the police in internal security operations and defending the state against outside aggression.

Also Read: Why Biren bid to raze bunkers has sparked unease in Manipur — ‘villages attacked almost daily’ 

‘A divided house’

Former Manipur Police chief Yumnam Joykumar Singh lamented that the police force stands divided on ethnic lines.

“In my time, there was no communal feeling within the force. Today, in this situation, I am surprised that Kukis have all left. There’s a total divide between the Meitei and the Kuki personnel. That’s very unfortunate,” said Singh, who also served as deputy chief minister from 2017 to 2022.

For any operational commitment in the past, he said, Manipur Police personnel drawn from every community dealt with the situation professionally, maintaining communal and political neutrality.

“In 2009, there was a Naga-Meitei standoff when NSCN-IM chief Thuingaleng Muivah was not allowed to enter Manipur. But, the Naga police officers stopped him from entering. In 2006, there was a Meitei-Kuki clash when four Meitei labourers were killed by Kuki insurgents at Moreh. The Kuki officers of IRB patrolled the entire Moreh town, without any bias,” Singh explained.

He further suggested that recruitment strategies have proved wrong, leading to an ethnic imbalance within the force.

“Earlier, commandos used to be only from police. But later, we took in some from Manipur Rifles as well to bring about a change. Unfortunately, things have gone bad now. It is not the same Manipur Police that I led. Deterioration started from 2022 onwards. Selection of commandos was hardly done on merit,” he said.

Recalling his stint as the Manipur DGP from 2007 to 2012, Singh said he had restructured and revamped the commando unit of the force in 2008.

“I was away from the state from 1994 to 2002 on deputation with the BSF. Around 1979, when valley insurgency surfaced, Manipur Police was more or less leaderless, not knowing how to face the valley insurgents. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the United National Liberation Front (UNLF) and the PREPAK were strong then,” said Singh. “I advised them (cops) to be ethical officers and thinking men who use common sense and adapt with terrain.”

The police force proved its mettle against Naga rebels in the 1990s when insurgency was at its peak in the hills, he said.

“Militancy, extortion had led to a near-collapse of public order. People were scared to move out of houses those days, and everything shut down around dusk. The police stations and security outposts of various forces were overrun; weapons given away during ambushes by militants,” he said.

The 1976-cadre IPS officer had undergone counter insurgency (CI) training in Northern Ireland in 1989.

“As time passed, the police gained much experience through on-the-job training. Eventually, the Manipur Police, which was giving away weapons and scared of fighting insurgents, became the front-runner in CI operations, so much so that every force requested me to conduct joint operations,” he said.

But, those years also came with the allegations of over 1,500 fake encounter killings — the last of which dates back to 2012 — in the state. “I don’t know from where they got the figure, but none of the persons killed during my tenure was innocent. Each was with one militant group or the other. A huge number of insurgents were also arrested,” Singh said.

Also Read: ‘Moral obligation’ — NDA partner Kuki People’s Alliance withdraws support from Biren Singh govt 

Hurdles on ground

A retired civil servant in Bishnupur district said though people in Manipur generally do not trust police or uniformed personnel, they have now become the “saviours”.

“Security forces should save both communities, as everyone is suffering. They have started treating it as war, and in war, all is justified, but it’s not right,” he said.

The home department official mentioned above said that a homegrown force has to operate under certain limitations to an extent, when handling own people. Dealing with a hostile crowd in a riot situation, he said, requires a different approach from an attack in conventional warfare.

“Security forces are handling organised groups, and a situation different from other parts of the country where people don’t storm police stations or loot armouries, or surround a battalion. In Manipur, armed forces have to adjust operational procedures. They are overwhelmed as people come in thousands,” he added.

Former police chief Singh, however, suggested that Assam Rifles could be withdrawn “till the situation improves”.

“In my time, there was no misunderstanding between Assam Rifles and Manipur Police. They had even helped us. Now there’s a lot of suspicion against the force. They have lost the confidence of the Meiteis. It would be good to take out Assam Rifles for sometime, one or two years, and utilise them in other states. When sentiments are calmer, they can return,” he said.

As for the Assam Rifles, the paramilitary force said obstruction in troop movement by womenfolk and navigating highway blockades have been major challenges.

“Assam Rifles will operate the way it has been operating. We have created buffer zones by taking police of both sides into confidence, and they have listened. Our men are holding ground at various places, without infrastructure, sitting under the rain, and in any condition,” said an officer of the paramilitary force.

Across localities in Imphal West, Imphal East and Bishnupur districts, groups of Meira Paibi are demanding the ouster of Assam Rifles from the state, among other things.

“We never thought Assam Rifles would be one-sided. They are protecting one community and treating the other as an enemy. We are hurt by that approach. They should help all, and stay neutral,” said Sana Tombi, representing a Meira Paibi unit at Singjamei, Imphal. “We were happy when Assam Rifles were deployed. They saved many lives when violence broke out on 3-4 May, and we thought the crisis would be resolved. But it is not.”

Another Meira Paibi, Sumila Devi, felt not all from the Assam Rifles can be blamed. “At certain specific places, the troops have been good to the Meiteis.”

Elaborating on why people are satisfied with the police functioning, a security officer suggested that lines were sharply drawn in the state. “The Meitei personnel have moved to the valley, and the Kuki component has moved to the hills. People think the police are great because it is not stopping them from roaming around with weapons or apprehending them,” he said.

Security forces, meanwhile, are operating under risks in adjusting to the requirements of law and human rights, or in providing assistance to the police, a concern highlighted by a defence official posted in Manipur.

“While remaining neutral, if you take a measure, it may be assumed as going against a particular community. It puts the troops at the risk of being misjudged, or camps being attacked. While ensuring the right to life, and vowing never to use heavy weapons against our own people, come what may — we may be overwhelmed within five minutes by a mob of thousands,” he said. “In the past few days, violence has gone down. But the question is, how long can you hold it?”

Summing up the situation in Manipur, Lt Gen. Singh (Retd) said that remedial actions should be taken when killings take place under a commander’s area of responsibility — be it any security force.

“When the Assam Rifles evacuated about 40,000 people, everyone was happy and appreciated the humanitarian efforts. A trust deficit developed in the valley over a period of time. What’s happening in Manipur is that everyone is functioning at crossroads. That is a very sad thing,” he said.

(Edited by Tony Rai)

Also Read: Mizoram BJP vice-chief quits, says ‘Biren Singh & Amit Shah failed to protect Christians’ in Manipur