During the hearing, Senior Counsel Colin Gonsalves brought up the matter, stating that despite assurances from the Central government, seventy tribal individuals had been killed. However, the Supreme Court refused to urgently consider the Manipur Tribal Forum’s application, which alleged that the Central government’s assurances regarding the recent violence in Manipur were insincere and false.
A vacation bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and MM Sundresh recognized the issue as a significant concern related to law and order. However, they mentioned that the case would not be heard until the Court resumed normal operations after the summer break.
Colin Gonsalves, the senior counsel, raised the matter before the bench, arguing that the application aimed to secure the tribal areas and highlighted the killing of seventy tribal people despite assurances from the Central government. He expressed disappointment, stating, “This institution is our last hope, yet tribals are being murdered even after assurances.”
Attorney General Tushar Mehta countered by asserting that the security agencies were doing their utmost to address the situation. “I am so sorry that this must be said,” he added.
The Court scheduled the case for listing on July 3, declining to hear it earlier.
The application, filed on June 9 by the tribal welfare organization, alleged that an additional 81 members of the Kuki tribe had been killed and 31,410 Kukis had been displaced since the last hearing in the Supreme Court. The Court was also informed about the extensive destruction of 237 churches, 73 administrative quarters, and 141 villages.
The forum argued that the authorities’ assurances were no longer trustworthy and were made insincerely, suggesting a communal agenda for ethnic cleansing by the Union of India and the Chief Minister of the State against the Kukis. They emphasized that the portrayal of the violence as a conflict between two tribal communities was inaccurate and claimed that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) supported the attackers.
According to the application, if these groups were not apprehended and prosecuted, any semblance of peace would remain fragile. The application also highlighted the involvement of influential politicians and drug kingpins in poppy cultivations relying on tribal labor.
The forum was one of the parties that had petitioned the Supreme Court to direct the Central and State governments to evacuate Manipuri Tribals who had sought refuge in CRPF camps and ensure their safe return home under security escort.
The Manipur government had assured the Supreme Court on May 8 that it would address concerns related to the ongoing violence and take preventive measures. However, the forum argued in its application that this arrangement was untenable as it was made without consulting the affected tribal groups.
