A Congress party main opposition India supporter waves a banner in the air while Rahul Gandhi (not pictured) addresses members at his 66-day long “Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra” (“Unite India Justice March”) first day, which was held in Thoubal district of Manipur state, Northeastern on January 14, 2024.
The BJP and its ally Naga People’s Front were voted out by the people of Manipur from Inner and Outer Manipur constituencies respectively, enabling the congress candidates to have easy wins over these two seats on the backdrop of ethnicity based political conflict between Meiteis (a group from the valley) and hills based Scheduled Tribe Kuki-Zo people during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
The margin for Alfred Kanngam Arthur of Congress in Outer Manipur constituency (ST) surpassed an overwhelming total of 83 thousand. The move by Congress to field Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) professor A. Bimol Akoijam in Inner Manipur constituency paid off dearly for Mr. Akoijam because he defeated State Minister Th Basantakumar Singh, who was elected under BJP with a majority of more than one lakh nine thousands votes.
Inner Manipur constituency is home to voters belonging primarily to Meitei community that includes almost all Valley districts while Outer Manipur constituency is majorly composed of two Kuki-Zo tribal communities and Naga tribes.
The Kuki Soi and civil society organisations like Zo United and Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum (ITLF) referred to it as a “positive” outcome in response to the results.
Conflict and campaign strategies
Manipur voted for the first two phases of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections with all contesting parties having to address ethnic conflict. This has claimed over 220 lives including security personnel, caused injuries to thousands others, as well as internally displaced over 50,000 persons who are being catered for by putting up special polling booths even at relief camps.
During campaigning in Inner Manipur, BJP was torn between promising peace as a priority or trying to present N. Biren Singh government’s handling of the conflict in positive light.
However, Mr. Akoijam focused his campaign on accountability from not only this but also previous BJP governments both at Centre and State for not being able to control the conflict and unnecessarily pampering some Kuki-Zo separatist groups that were under Suspension of Operation agreement with government.
But there was no candidate from Kuki-Zo community contesting in Outer Manipur because ITLF passed a resolution asking their people not to stand for elections. Consequently, it made way for direct fight between Mr. Arthur (a Naga) while Timothy Zimik represented NPF since they stood alone without any other candidate from Kuki-Zo community.
The BJP won over 33 percent of votes in Outer Manipur during last election but chose not to field its candidate this year forming pre-poll alliance with NPF instead.
While Congress tried building a base of tribal solidarity so as gain trust of Kuki-Zo voters Betty said that NPF worked hard on establishing family background ties with the same community so as gain support from them.
In fact voter turnouts exceeded 70% in both constituencies though vote casting had to be repeated at voting stations from these areas due incidences of booth capturing, voter intimidation and violence. Both Congress candidates received death threats during the campaigns and Mr. Arthur was further attacked during his political rallies.
The Zo United in a statement last night thanked all apex tribe bodies for remaining true to their resolution of consolidating the community’s vote, saying this consolidation resulted in the Congress regaining control over the seat that had been snatched by NPF from them in 2019.
According to Muan Tombing, general secretary of ITLF who spoke with The Hindu “This confirms that secularism is what people are more concerned about as well as safeguarding tribal interests and our rights.”
