It took a viral video for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to finally break his silence on ethnic violence in India’s northeastern state of Manipur. The footage sparked outrage far beyond the state when it became public in July: Filmed on May 4, it shows a mob assaulting two women from the Kuki minority—stripped naked—before pushing them into an empty field. Reports citing the survivors’ families revealed the complicity of the state police. Ironically, the police station a few hundred yards from the site of the crime was awarded the title “Best in the Country” in 2020.
Violence between the Meitei ethnic majority and the Kukis has hounded Manipur since May, when a court order reserving some government jobs for Meiteis exacerbated tensions over land rights, poppy farming, and religious freedoms. Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh has carved out a role as the Meitei community’s de facto leader. More
