Kuki-Zo MLAs Return to Manipur Assembly After Three-Year Absence, Signalling Possible Shift

In a development carrying significant political and symbolic weight, two Kuki-Zo legislators attended the Manipur Legislative Assembly in person on Wednesday for the first time since ethnic violence erupted in the state in May 2023.

Haokholet Kipgen, MLA from Saitu, and Kimneo Haokip Hangshing, MLA from Saikul, were physically present during the opening sitting of the eighth session of the 12th Manipur Legislative Assembly in Imphal.

Their return to the House comes after more than three years during which Kuki-Zo legislators largely stayed away from the Assembly in Imphal amid the continuing conflict between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities.

“This is a good sign from the people’s representatives, and it is a welcome step,” Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh said, describing their presence as a positive development for peace and unity.

Kipgen, while entering the Assembly complex, said he was happy to return to the House after a long absence.

Deputy Chief Minister Nemcha Kipgen, another Kuki-Zo legislator, attended the proceedings virtually.

The Chief Minister said the development reflected the possibility of moving Manipur towards dialogue and reconciliation. He credited the state government's efforts to reduce the trust deficit between communities and reiterated his administration's commitment to inclusive dialogue, reconciliation and restoring normalcy.

The significance of Wednesday’s development, however, lies in the political tension surrounding the participation of Kuki-Zo representatives.

Just two days earlier, on August 31, the Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM), the apex body of the Kuki tribal community, had directed Kuki-Zo MLAs not to travel to Imphal for the Assembly session until a political settlement was reached on the community’s demand for a separate administration.

The KIM argued that participation in the Assembly while the core political question concerning the future of the Kuki-Zo people remained unresolved would contradict the community’s collective position.

“There can be no return to business as usual without a political solution,” the organisation said.

The Kuki-Zo political demand has emerged as one of the most contentious issues in Manipur since the violence began on May 3, 2023. Kuki-Zo organisations have been seeking a separate political administration and have called for a Union Territory with a legislature for the tribal areas.

The community has 10 legislators in the 60-member Assembly, including Nemcha Kipgen and seven other BJP legislators.

Since the outbreak of violence, most Kuki-Zo MLAs have boycotted Assembly sessions and largely avoided travelling to the Imphal Valley, reflecting the depth of the political and security divide between the two communities.

The situation had shown a limited change after the BJP formed a new government under Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh on February 4, 2026. Some Kuki-Zo legislators had participated in subsequent Assembly proceedings virtually, but Wednesday marked the first time in more than three years that Kuki-Zo MLAs physically returned to the Assembly.

Whether the appearance of the two legislators marks the beginning of a broader political engagement or remains an isolated development is likely to depend on how the larger demand for a separate administration is addressed.

For the moment, their return to the Assembly is an important break from the political stalemate that has kept Manipur’s elected representatives divided along the lines of the conflict. It offers a small opening for institutional engagement — but the deeper political dispute remains unresolved.