Manipur govt bans Kuki-Zo organisation under UAPA

The Manipur government has banned the World Kuki-Zo Intellectual Council (WKZIC) and declared it an unlawful organisation under Section 3 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, following an emergency meeting of the Cabinet on Tuesday.

The state government said WKZIC had issued a news release on October 24, which claimed that the Kuki-Zo community would face 'another war' in November, before the harvest, and the community should stockpile arms and ammunition to face the 'war'.

WKZIC's bulletin asked youth volunteers to 'fight the war on the frontlines'. 'Kuki national army' and underground groups would join the volunteers only in critical situations because of the militant outfit's ceasefire agreement of 2008 with the state. The volunteers would be equipped with the best arms and ammunition would be supplied without limit, the Manipur government quoted WKZIC news release last Tuesday as saying.


The state government said that an FIR was filed against the organisation on Monday and after the killing of a senior police officer, the Cabinet also recommended declaring WKZIC as an unlawful organisation.

Moreh SDPO Chingtham Anand Kumar was killed on Tuesday by unidentified gunmen. The Manipur government said that central and state forces would ensure free movement of transport on Pallel-Moreh stretch of NH-102. No private person would be allowed to carry arms in or around Moreh, the state government said.

Kuki Inpi Manipur, the apex body of Kuki tribes, said that indiscriminate use of brute force by the Meitei police commandos at Moreh instigated a retaliatory shootout between the Meitei police commandos and the Kuki-Zo village volunteers. The shootout has caused wide public unrest in the town, it said.