The Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum (ITLF) on Wednesday said it would “finalise an alternative location" for the burial of the Kuki-Zo people killed in the ongoing ethnic conflict in Manipur following a request from Union home minister Amit Shah.
A statement released by the ITLF after a meeting with Shah in Delhi on Wednesday said the minister had “requested” the ITLF delegation “not to insist” on carrying out the burial programme at the same venue, which falls within “the conflict zone", and "identify an alternative location” in consultation with the deputy commissioner of Churachandpur and perform the burial at the earliest.
“The delegation assured that in view of the request by the Hon. UHM (Shah), they will finalise an alternative location in consultation with the people,” the statement said, adding Shah had said the government sericulture farmland where the burial had earlier been planned “will only be utilised for a common public purpose in consultation with the ITLF and other stakeholders”.
The statement was released by ITLF spokesperson Ginza Vualzong in the ITLF Whatsapp media group.
The ITLF is a conglomerate of recognised Kuki-Zo organisations in the Churachandpur district of Manipur.
The ITLF-Shah meeting was held as a “follow-up” to the appeal issued by the Union home ministry on August 3 to “amicably” resolve the burial issue which had threatened a fresh flare-up between the two communities.
