Plea to shift Myanmar Kuki detainees from Imphal jail

The Kuki Organisation for Human Rights (KOHUR) has petitioned Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla and the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), seeking the transfer of 64 Myanmar nationals of Kuki ethnicity from the Imphal Central Jail to “temporary prisons” in the Kuki-dominated districts of the State.

In a separate memoranda addressed to Mr. Bhalla and NHRC Chairperson, Justice V. Ramasubramanian, on July 25, the rights organisation raised serious constitutional and humanitarian concerns over the continued detention of the Myanmar nationals. It highlighted the case of two of them, who have remained in jail despite completing their sentences.

The KOHUR said the detention of the Myanmar nationals was a “grave violation” of Article 21 of the Constitution of India, which guarantees the right to life and personal liberty, and a breach of international human rights conventions to which India is a signatory.

The organisation referred to earlier gubernatorial notifications that permitted the relocation of Indian Kuki under-trial prisoners from Imphal and other sensitive zones to temporary prisons in the Kuki-dominated districts, such as Churachandpur, Kangpokpi, and Tengnoupal.

The KOHUR statement, signed by its chairman, H.S. Benjamin Mate, pointed out that the Myanmar detainees share deep cultural, linguistic, and familial ties with the indigenous Kukis of Manipur. It said that denying these detainees relocation based on nationality “constitutes discriminatory treatment” and the continued detention of individuals beyond their sentence was “a clear instance of arbitrary incarceration and a miscarriage of justice”.

Centres for civil service exams placed outside State

Meanwhile, the Delhi and NCR unit of the Kuki Students’ Organisation has objected to the decision of the Manipur Public Service Commission (MPSC) to conduct its upcoming Mains examination in Assam’s Guwahati instead of Churachandpur district in Manipur, “widely considered a safe zone” for Kuki students.

In a letter to the Manipur Governor, the students’ body said the decision was unjust and burdensome, especially for aspirants from the Kuki community who have been displaced or affected by the protracted violence in the State. It underscored the disproportionate impact such logistical decisions have on conflict-affected communities.

“If this request is not heeded, Kuki students in Delhi and across India may perceive this as an act of suppressing the educational opportunities of a particular community,” the organisation stated.