The surge in violence came as tensions between Manipur’s Kuki tribe and the Meitei, the state’s largest minority group, began to climb in earnest in April after the state’s high court greenlit the Meiteis’ request for Scheduled Tribe status. The designation gives communities special constitutionally backed protections including reserved seats in the parliament and state legislatures, affirmative action in education and employment, and property protections.

In fear that this recognition would cost them their own affirmative benefits, the Kuki, the majority of whom are Christians, opposed the proposed change. When they organized local protests on May 3, the violence broke out in several locations.

“[The Meiteis’] main aim was to rid the hills from Kuki presence, and they have been successful at it,” said Thangkholal Haokip, a Manipur social worker who is now living at the refugee camp. “They have instilled fear, uncertainty, and we are now homeless.”

A divided Manipur

While the Kuki protest became the mob’s catalyst for its recent rampage, territorial disputes, competition over resources, deep-seated historical grievances, and religious tensions have kept the tribal community and the Meitei at odds with each other for years.

“India’s northeastern region boasts of a rich tapestry of ethnic groups. But some of these communities have clashed over matters such as land, resources, and political power,” said Vijayesh Lal, EFI’s general secretary. “This is perhaps the first time that the religious angle has been seen in the ongoing violence in Manipur.”

Within Manipur, nearly equal numbers of residents (41% each) practice Hinduism and Christianity. But while the Hindus are largely Meitei, the Kuki and other tribals make up the majority of the Christians.

In recent years, tensions over land have been exacerbated by the political influence of the Hindu nationalist organizations Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which have sought to promote their ideology in northeast India and have used the Meitei community to advance their political agenda in the state, Christian leaders from Manipur say.

The conflict is “two sides of the same coin—religious motivation on one side and political motivation on the other, both intersecting at this point [where it has resulted in large scale violence],” Kamzamang said.

To him and other Kuki leaders, the Hindu Meitei mobs’ religious motivation became evident when their violence also included burning down Meitei churches and attacking Meitei Christians.

Walter Fernandez, who leads the North Eastern Social Research Centre in neighboring state of Assam, believes that the attacks were preplanned.

“The conflict [about land and tribal status] has been there for many years,” Fernandez said. “There was a major blockade in 2010, then major conflict in 2015, again in 2018. For the first time, religious places have been attacked, and this time it is systematic by organized paid gangs who were carrying lists of religious places.”

The point of no return

The majority of those fleeing Manipur have sought refuge in the neighboring state of Mizoram. Only a handful have made the 1,500-mile trip to Delhi. Currently about 70 of the displaced are staying in EFI’s relief center, a group that includes breastfeeding babies, their parents, college students, and the elderly.

Few say they see a future for themselves in Manipur.

Paojamang Haokip was two months away from graduating with an engineering degree.

“The violence has shattered us. We find ourselves somewhere unknown. … We don’t know where we can head to,” he said. “The situation is far from getting normalized. We will not go back.”

Back in Manipur, tensions have not dissipated and violent incidents have continued, even in the lead-up to a visit this week from India’s home minister, Amit Shah.

Last week, the army used tear gas on a mob after it set multiple abandoned homes on fire in a Kuki neighborhood in the capital city of Imphal. The government responded to the incident by instituting a curfew and suspending internet service in the area.

But the latest violence also included Kukis, who were furious at their situation and have taken matters into their own hands.