Protesters Storm Sangai Festival Venue, Security Forces In Manipur

Tension gripped Manipur's Imphal East district on Thursday as protesters, including internally displaced persons (IDPs) backed by the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), clashed with security forces outside the Hapta Kangjeibung venue of the upcoming Sangai Festival 2025. The confrontation, marked by tear gas shells, lathi charges, and attempts to breach the Palace Compound, unfolded a day before the 10-day cultural extravaganza's scheduled start on November 21, highlighting the deepening rift between the valley-based Meitei civil society and the Governor-led administration under President's Rule.

The Sangai Festival, named after the state's endangered brow-antlered deer and a flagship tourism event showcasing Manipur's dances, crafts, and cuisine, was set to resume after a two-year hiatus due to the ethnic violence that erupted in May 2023 between Meiteis and Kukis, displacing over 60,000 people and claiming more than 200 lives. COCOMI, a prominent Meitei organization, has spearheaded opposition, calling for a mass sit-in on November 20 and a 24-hour "cease work" or stay-at-home protest on November 21 to boycott the event. Convenor Khuraijam Athouba condemned the government's "insensitive" push for the festival, arguing it prioritizes tourism over urgent issues like IDP rehabilitation, freedom of movement on national highways blocked for over two years, and restoring normalcy.

Protesters, numbering in the hundreds and carrying placards reading "Displaced Lives Matter," "No Peace, No Sangai Festival," and "Rights First, Tourism Later," marched from relief camps in areas like Sajiwa and Akampat toward the venue, chanting against the "festival facade." Security forces, deployed heavily around the site, resorted to tear gas and lathis after demonstrators tried to storm the gates, injuring several including civil society leaders. COCOMI decried the "brutal and unprovoked" response as a "violation of democratic norms," vowing escalated agitation if demands—safe IDP returns, peace restoration, and an end to suppression—are ignored.

The state government, through Chief Secretary Vineet Kumar Goel, appealed for cooperation, emphasizing the festival's role in economic revival and market linkages for local artisans while insisting IDP relief remains a top priority. Earlier, a 24-hour shutdown by the proscribed Kangleipak Communist Party (Military Council) on November 19 had already paralyzed Imphal's markets, underscoring widespread valley discontent. With the event slated to run until November 30 across multiple venues, heavy security blankets the area, but protesters warn of further disruptions, framing the standoff as a battle for dignity amid Manipur's protracted crisis.