MHA to resume talks with Kuki-Zo insurgents, says camps near Meitei areas must be closed before renegotiating SoO pact

The Union Home Ministry (MHA) is all set to resume talks with Kuki-Zo insurgent groups in Manipur after a gap of two years.

A senior government official told The Hindu that the suspension of operations pact (SoO) with the insurgent groups in Manipur will be “renegotiated with stringent ground rules”. The SoO framework has to be in existence before any “political solution” can be reached.

The Kuki-Zo SoO groups will hold the talks with the MHA’s Northeast adviser A.K. Mishra and Intelligence Bureau officials, on June 9.

Changing demands

Before May 2023, when ethnic violence erupted in the State, the primary demand of the SoO groups was to have autonomous territorial councils within Manipur. After the conflict began, however, they changed the stance to demand a separate administration for Kuki-Zo areas, defining it as a Union Territory with a legislature.