Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), a Manipur civil group met with National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM) on January 21, reports The Sangai Express. COCOMI called on Muivah not to pursue any separate administrative unit for any particular ethnic community based on ethnicity. COCOMI convener Sunil Karam said that 14 representatives of COCOMI held a meeting with the NSCN-IM leader on the agenda of peaceful co-existence together with four representatives of the Tangkhul Naga Foothills Organisation. Commenting on media reports that two territorial councils would be set up for Nagas in Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh, Sunil Karam maintained that there is no alteration to the people’s and COCOMI’s resolve to oppose any attempt to create separate administrative unit based on ethnicity. The COCMI convener also added that during a meeting with COCOMI representatives, the Central Government expressed its intention to set up a territorial council in the State but the COCOMI representatives categorically stated that the Government of India should not ever commit such a political blunder.
The Hinduadds that COCOMI convener Sunil Karam said stated that “We agreed unanimously to work together for peaceful co-existence among different communities of Manipur and to shape a future for the Northeast without letting a third party, the Government of India, interfere”. This is believed to be a significant development in a State with a history of cold conflict between the Meitei community dominating the Imphal Valley and the Nagas inhabiting the hills around. A majority of the members of the NSCN (IM) are from the hills of Manipur. The COCOMI, which is a conglomerate of several civil society organisations, stands opposed to any changes in Manipur’s existing administrative setups.