‘Not an inch of our land’: Kuki chiefs protest Indo-Myanmar boundary realignment in Manipur

Thousands of people gathered in Manipur’s Chandel district on August 11 to oppose the proposed demarcation and realignment of the Indo-Myanmar boundary in the Khengjoi sector, with affected Kuki chiefs demanding that the existing boundary position be maintained.

Protests were held at Khengjang and Molcham villages under the banner of affected border-area Kuki chiefs. Demonstrators objected to the proposed relocation of boundary pillars, arguing that the exercise could affect ancestral settlements, agricultural land, burial grounds and customary community land.

The mobilisation followed claims by the affected communities that the Ministry of Home Affairs had directed the completion of the demarcation exercise within three months after a meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on May 11.

The proposed realignment involves Boundary Pillars 65 at Molcham, 66 at Jangngoulen, 67 at Khumkot and 68 at Joldam. The Kuki chiefs have maintained that the proposed alignment differs from the existing position on the ground, which they say has traditionally been recognised and occupied by local communities.

“This is not merely a question of boundary pillars. These are our ancestral homesteads, cultivation fields, burial grounds and customary commons,” the chiefs said.

They alleged that the proposed exercise was being undertaken without adequately addressing the concerns of communities that would be directly affected by any change in the boundary alignment.

The chiefs said the land along the frontier was closely linked to the livelihood and heritage of generations of residents and argued that any unilateral alteration could result in the loss of ancestral land and disruption of established settlements and cultivation patterns.

“We cannot accept this undemocratic move of the government. Not an inch of our land will be parted,” they said.

The affected Kuki chiefs called on the Centre and the Manipur government to take the concerns of the border villages into consideration before proceeding with any realignment. They also demanded that the existing boundary position not be altered without addressing the claims and concerns of the affected communities.

The protest adds to the political sensitivity surrounding territorial and identity-related issues in Manipur, where competing claims over land, security and the rights of indigenous communities have remained contentious.

Organisers described the mobilisation at Khengjang and Molcham as a demonstration of opposition to any boundary exercise that, they said, fails to take into account the existing ground position and the interests of communities living along the frontier.