CRPF personnel deployed at Gamgiphai, an inter-state border check post following the recent violence in various districts, in Kangpokpi/Imphal West. File | Photo credit: ANI
A Kuki outfit warned a transgender social activist from the Meitei community, who had cycled over 2,300 km to spread a message of peace, against visiting Manipur’s Kangpokpi district.
Malem Thongam embarked on her ‘Cycling for Manipur Peace’ expedition from Qutub Minar in Delhi on 2nd October 2025. She arrived in Naga-dominated Senapati district on Wednesday (December 17, 2025) after pedaling over 2,300 km across various states in Kupokpiang on Friday and is scheduled to cycle through Kupokpi-kki. (December 19, 2025) before ending the expedition at Imphal.
In a statement, the Committee for Tribal Unity (COTU) said it “would like to immediately bring to the notice of the concerned authority the proposed bike ride for crossing Kangpokpi Malem Thongam district which has created tension in the name of peace in Manipur on 19 December 2025. It should be stopped immediately”.
It stated that if any unusual incidents occur when they cross Kangpokpi District, “the COTU and Kuki Zo people of the district will not be responsible, but the appropriate authority will be fully responsible.”
Security has been tightened along NH -2 in Kangpokpi district in view of Ms. Thongam’s visit,” officials said.
Since May 2023, ethnic clashes between the Kuki and Meitei communities have killed more than 260 people and displaced thousands. The Kukis and Meiteis have been keeping out of each other’s areas since the outbreak of violence, leaving the state deeply divided along ethnic lines.
BJP MLA Yumnam Khemchand Singh, who belongs to the Meitei community, visited a relief camp where Kuki people who were forcibly displaced were staying in Ukhrul district on December 8. He became the first leader from either side to cross the divide and visit the camp of the other community.
Kuki outfits strongly criticized this overture, calling it a “calculated political exercise” rather than an act of genuine concern.
The state has been under President’s Rule since February after BJP leader N. Biren Singh resigned as chief minister amid criticism of his government’s handling of the crisis.
Published – 18 Dec 2025 11:34 IST
