Manipur: CoTU accuses COCOMI of allegedly propagating "anti-tribal" agenda

The Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU) slammed Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) of allegedly spreading "ethno-fascist narrative". The statement, issued following the Kuki-Zo Public Resolution adopted on the 22nd Remembrance Day Observance at the Martyr Cemetery in Phaijang on March 3, 2025, has been denounced as yet another calculated assault on the rights and dignity of the Kuki-Zo people.

CoTU claims that organisations like COCOMI are at the forefront of a "systematic campaign of hatred", allegedly working in tandem with "militant groups" to push a "hegemonic and genocidal agenda" against the Kuki-Zo community since May 3, 2023. The organization accuses COCOMI of operating as the political mouthpiece for extremist militias.

According to CoTU, COCOMI’s appeals to the Union Government mirror the demands of their armed affiliates, particularly the Arambai Tenggol. These representations, CoTU argues, do not reflect the genuine sentiments of the valley’s civilians but rather serve the vested interests of militant factions determined to dominate and subjugate minorities.

CoTU further asserts how the people of the valley rejected the "fascist ideology" championed by these groups during the 2024 Parliamentary Election. 

CoTU accused COCOMI of harbouring "double standards", while questioning how an organization representing armed militias can simultaneously claim to be the voice of the valley’s civilians—especially when those same civilians had already rejected their ideology at the ballot box. The organization calls out COCOMI for masquerading as a legitimate body while openly declaring hostility against the Kuki-Zo people.

Reaffirming its commitment to the tribal cause, CoTU underscores that it was formed after May 3, 2023, to safeguard the political aspirations and rights of the Kuki-Zo people. 

Issuing a "warning", CoTU calls on these valley-based groups to focus on their own aspirations rather than attempting to suppress the legitimate demands of the Kuki-Zo people—who remain committed to seeking their future within the constitutional framework of the Republic of India.