The tribal groups are considered to be settlers who migrated from Myanmar and are derided as outsiders.
Though the reservation demand is the immediate cause for the violence, there have been other issues of conflict, too. The tribal groups have alleged that the BJP-led government, headed by N Biren Singh, has targeted them. Many incidents in the last two years, including evictions from homes, have been cited as acts of hostility and discrimination. The government has defended the incidents as normal administrative.
The violent clashes that broke out in many places in Manipur are a culmination of longstanding tensions and suspicions between the state’s tribal communities and the mainstream Meitei group. The Kuki and Naga tribes in the state have enjoyed reservation benefits. The Meitei have been demanding inclusion in the list of Scheduled Tribes.
The demand got a boost from a recent order of the Manipur High Court that directed the government to submit its recommendation on the matter within a month. This was seen as a step that would pave the way for grant of reservation to the Meitei.
The demand for reservations has been increasing because of the failure of the central and state governments to provide adequate and affordable education facilities and the inability of the economy to provide enough jobs for the country’s youth. Quotas are therefore seen to be a way to obtain scarce education and employment opportunities by all groups. Governments have been willing because of political considerations but the courts have not been very approving. The issue also gets mixed up with other issues of social and economic conflict and grievances, as in Manipur. The state government was seen as the champion of the Meitei community. It did not anticipate the violence and mishandled the issue.
