Manipur: Thadou Students’ Association alleges misuse of community name in police complaint

The Thadou Students’ Association (TSA) has rejected a complaint filed at Kangpokpi Police Station against social activist Ashang Kasar, calling it a “baseless” attempt to misuse the name of the Thadou community and escalate ethnic tensions in Manipur.

The complaint was lodged on March 15 by Lungoulen Guite, who identified himself as the general secretary of Thadou Inpi Sadar Hills. It seeks the registration of an FIR against Kasar over remarks made during a television discussion on Impact TV’s programme Manung Hutna (Episode 58: “After Meitei-Kuki, Naga-Kuki Next?”), aired on March 12.

Guite alleged that Kasar spread “false and misleading” information about the killing of two Kuki men, Thengin Baite and Thangboimang Khongsai, in Kamjong district. The complaint stated that the remarks distorted facts surrounding the incident, caused distress to the victims’ families and had the potential to inflame tensions between communities.

Sections 196 and 353(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita were cited in the complaint, which accused the activist of promoting enmity and circulating misleading information through digital platforms. A link to the YouTube broadcast of the discussion was submitted as evidence. Police have not issued any statement on the matter so far.

Responding to the development, the Thadou Students’ Association said the complaint “categorically rejects the baseless complaint filed by one Lungoulen Guite in the name of ‘Thadou Inpi-Sadar Hills’ against social activist Ashang Kasar”.

The organisation stated that the killings in Kamjong district had “zero involvement or connection to the Thadou community” and alleged that the complaint was an attempt to exploit a tragic incident for political purposes.

TSA also questioned Guite’s authority to represent the Thadou community in Kangpokpi district, describing the group he represents as a “fraudulent, unrecognised proxy outfit”. According to the association, the so-called Thadou Inpi–Sadar Hills had earlier been criticised by the organisation for allegedly acting as a front for “Kuki supremacist agendas”.

The association maintained that Kasar’s comments during the discussion addressed the killings within the context of rising tensions between Naga and Kuki groups. Allegations that the remarks were misleading were described as a “deliberate distortion aimed at suppressing open discourse”.

It further warned that invoking legal provisions such as Sections 196 and 353(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita could amount to misuse of the legal process and might be intended to intimidate critics.

TSA also accused certain groups of invoking the Thadou identity to create confusion in ongoing ethnic disputes. The association claimed that such actions attempt to “muddy waters, exploit ethnic tensions and drag the Thadou name into unrelated conflicts”.

Reaffirming its position, the organisation said the Thadou community is a distinct Scheduled Tribe with its own identity and history and that no individual or organisation could “hijack or weaponise” that identity for political or ideological purposes.

Describing the complaint as “identity theft, harassment and an assault on free speech”, the association demanded that Guite and others “immediately cease misrepresenting the Thadou community”.

The group said it would continue to defend “Thadou autonomy, dignity and rights while upholding peace, truth and constitutional values in Manipur”, adding that “the Thadou voice belongs solely to the Thadou people, not proxies or opportunists”.