Manipur Ethnic Divide Mars Joint Tribute to Air India Crash Victims from Meitei, Kuki Groups

Imphal, Manipur, June 20, 2025: The Christian-majority Kuki community of Manipur has rejected a request from the Hindu-majority Meitei community to jointly receive the bodies of two Manipuri Air India crew members who died in the June 12 plane crash in Ahmedabad, citing security concerns and mistrust. The refusal followed a call from a Meitei civil group urging both sides to come together at Imphal airport to honour the deceased women.

The ill-fated Air India flight, which was a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad airport, killing 241 of the 242 people on board. Among the deceased were 22-year-old Kongbrailatpam Nganthoi Sharma, a Meitei, and 28-year-old Lamnunthem Singson, a Kuki, both from Manipur. Both women worked as crew members for Air India and were friends, despite the bitter enmity between their communities back in their home state in northeastern India. 

The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), a prominent Meitei organisation, had urged the warring ethnic groups to come together and jointly receive the remains of the two women at Imphal airport, emphasising that "both are daughters of Manipur" and deserve a united tribute.

However, Kuki community leaders rejected the proposal, citing deep mistrust and fears for their safety in the Meitei-dominated Imphal valley. 

“We cannot trust Meiteis anymore. The Meitei body’s call is a game plan against us,” a Kuki Christian leader said while speaking to UCA News on condition of anonymity. He added that Kukis who go to the Imphal Valley, where Meitei people dominate, are not sure to return. “They might be killed. The invitation to Imphal could be a trap to kill more Kukis,” he said.

Instead, the Kuki family of Lamnunthem Singson has proposed transporting her body through Dimapur airport in neighbouring Nagaland, completely avoiding Imphal. Authorities identified Singson’s body through DNA testing. However, they haven't yet conclusively identified the remains of Kongbrailatpam Sharma.

The conflict between the Meiteis and Kuki-Zo communities, ongoing since 2023, has claimed at least 260 lives—most of them from the Kuki-Christian minority—and displaced thousands. The violence initially erupted over the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe status, which Kukis opposed, arguing it would undermine their constitutional protections and exacerbate existing inequalities.

Since February 13, 2025, Manipur has been under federal rule following the resignation of Chief Minister N. Biren Singh, a Meitei, who stepped down amid mounting criticism over his failure to restore peace in the state.

In an official statement on June 16, the Manipur government expressed grief over the crash, saying, “The people of Manipur mourn the untimely and tragic demise of two of our daughters.” The statement assured full support to the bereaved families of the two deceased women and emphasised that all decisions regarding funeral arrangements would be made according to their wishes.

The standoff over the reception of the bodies underscores the entrenched ethnic division that continues to plague the northeastern Indian state, where community trust remains fragile and reconciliation elusive.

Source: UCA News