Manipur’s flower festival starts on thorny note

GUWAHATI:

A five-day festival named after an endemic seasonal flower has begun on a thorny note in conflict-scarred Manipur.

Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla on Tuesday (May 20, 2025) inaugurated the Shirui Lily Festival, held in the Naga-dominated Ukhrul district after a two-year gap due to the ethnic clashes between the Kuki-Zo and Meitei people.

An argument, however, arose at Gwaltabi, a security checkpoint in the Imphal East district, about 65 km southwest of the venue near Shirui village.

A team of 20 journalists and officials, heading to cover the festival, was allegedly told by the security personnel at this checkpoint to conceal the words ‘Manipur State Transport’ displayed on the government bus in which they were travelling. Incensed, the media persons returned to the State’s capital, Imphal, about 25 km away.

The festival, which was to have been a barometer of enforced peace in Manipur, was in the news after the State police registered a case against a Kuki student leader for allegedly asking the Meiteis to not cross the ‘buffer zone’ to attend the festival.

The buffer zone refers to an uninhabited strip between the Meitei-majority Imphal Valley and the surrounding hills dominated by the Kuki-Zo tribal people. The road from Imphal to Ukhrul, and the festival venue beyond, passes through some Kuki villages.

The Imphal Valley-based Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) condemned the Gwaltabi incident. It said the act of the security personnel appeared to be a deliberate attempt to delegitimise the authority and very existence of Manipur within its territory.

“Such actions are not only irresponsible but dangerously align with the agendas of illegal elements who have been persistently working to destabilise the region over the past two years,” the COCOMI said in a statement.

‘Pen down strike’

The All Manipur Working Journalists’ Union and the Editors’ Guild Manipur petitioned the Governor, demanding a probe into the incident and action against the guilty. They said the bus had been arranged exclusively for the media by the Directorate of Information and Public Relations.

“…upon reaching Gwaltabi, personnel from the 4 Mahar Regiment instructed the media team to hide the phrase ‘Manipur State Transport’ printed on the front of the bus. The instruction raised concern and confusion among the media professionals, who questioned the logic behind hiding a State government name while operating within the State,” their letter to the Governor read.

“Though the team initially attempted to comply in order to reach the venue in time, delays resulting from negotiations with the security forces led to significant time loss. As a result, the journalists decided to return to Imphal and later, arranged alternate transportation on their own,” the letter said.

The media bodies demanded clarity from the authorities on the rationale behind the instruction, especially given the State-backed nature of the journey.

“One understands the objections from the Kuki community, though unacceptable, but the Central forces supporting the demands of the Kuki is unprecedented and blatantly illegal in the true sense…” the letter read.

The media organisations resolved to launch a “pen down strike” on May 21, suspension of all normal duties by journalists, and a boycott of all news related to the Manipur government.

An official response from the Indian Army is awaited.