The principal of a school in strife-hit Manipur on Monday lodged a complaint with the Mizoram police for registering a Zero FIR accusing “suspected Meitei radicals” of burning down a “great portion” of his institution on October 18, his complaint underlining the worrying ground situation triggered by the ongoing ethnic conflict last year.

Benjamin Shakum, the principal of Blooming Flower Children’s Foundation School, which falls under the Jiribam police station in Manipur, in his complaint listed the details of the school and properties “lost in the arson” which took place between 1 am and 2 am of Friday requested the Kolasib police in neighbouring Mizoram “to register a Zero FIR as a regular FIR cannot be filed in Jiriban for reasons of safety and security to our lives”.

Zero FIR can be filed from any police station regardless of where a crime occurs. The distance between Jiribam and Kolasib is around 130km.

In his complaint, the principal has stated that he and his family members “had to abandon our home and school located at Kalinagar 2, Jiribam, Manipur, at the beginning of this year because of the unrest in Jiribam and as all members of the Kuki Zo Hmar community in Jiribam town had to leave our homes and properties ... due to the present conflict between the Kuki Zo Hmar and the Meiteis”.

School properties worth ₹21,63,600 have been damaged, including six classrooms, the principal has claimed.

Security forces and the fire department personnel managed to douse the fire but the fire caused extensive damage.

The school was established in 1997 and used to cater to about 500 students from all communities from nursery to Class X. It shut down before the start of the academic session this year owing to security issues. The school was unoccupied when the fire took place, sources said.

The request to file the Zero FIR in neighbouring Mizoram reflects the worrying law and order situation in Manipur, after over 17 months in the conflict despite efforts to initiate peace talks between the warring communities by the government.

The ongoing conflict between the Meiteis and Kuki-Zos that erupted on May 3, 2023, has made Kuki-Zo areas out of bounds for the Meiteis and Meitei areas out of bounds for Kuki-Zos owing to security reasons. At least 237 people have lost their lives and over 60,000 displaced due to the strife. The ongoing conflict had seen over 12,000 Kuki-Zomi-Hmar people from Manipur take shelter in neighbouring Mizoram. Even now over 8,000 internally displaced are taking refuge in Mizoram as the Mizos share the same Zo ethnicity with the Kuki-Zomi-Hmar people of Manipur.

Jiribam district where the school is located was largely unaffected by the ongoing conflict till June 6 this year. Sporadic incidents have been taking place since.

Meitei people living in rural areas of the Jiribam district have also been affected, having had to abandon their homes and shift to safer areas.

An official said 550 Meitei people are still lodged in relief camps Jiribam since the June violence, while most Hmar people have taken refuge in Cachar district of Assam and Kuki people in two villages under Jiribam sub-division.

The official also said a suo motu case has been registered in connection with the school fire and the Zero FIR will be merged once they receive it, adding the situation is currently under control.

The ground situation in Manipur can also be gauged from a press statement issued by the Assam Rifles on Monday on how the para military force “extended vital support to the villagers of Kwatha” on October 19 by providing “secure transportation to 16 residents, including school-going children and a senior citizen requiring urgent medical attention from Kwaktha to Pallel and back”.

Kwatha is a Meitei village in Tengnoupal district, and is about 46 km from Pallel in Kakching district. Pallel has a mixed population.

“The (Kwatha) villagers were safely escorted in protected vehicles, with the patient receiving ambulance support, ensuring timely access to healthcare and education amidst ongoing challenges. Since the onset of recent tensions, Assam Rifles has played a crucial role in safeguarding the community at Kwatha , providing a reassuring presence at all times,” the Assam Rifles statement said, adding, T Sanjoy Singh, Kwatha village secretary, praised Assam Rifles for its assistance.