Roads Blocked, Tyres Burnt: Churachandpur Shutdown Begins As Kuki-Zo Groups Oppose CM’s Visit For MLA Vungzagin Valte’s Funeral

New Delhi: Fresh tensions gripped Manipur on Friday after Kuki civil society organisations enforced a total shutdown across Churachandpur district to oppose Chief Minister Khemchand Singh's proposed visit to attend the funeral of BJP MLA Vungzagin Valte, while fresh firing was reported from the volatile Torbung area along the Bishnupur-Churachandpur border.

The shutdown, called by several Kuki-Zo organisations, began early in the day with protesters blocking major roads using burning tyres, logs and other barricades, bringing traffic and commercial activity to a complete halt. 

Protesters maintained that the Chief Minister was "not welcome" in Churachandpur and urged him to defer the visit, arguing that trust between the state government and the Kuki-Zo community remained absent following the 2023 ethnic violence.

The Chief Minister's visit was intended to attend the last rites of BJP MLA Vungzagin Valte, who succumbed to injuries sustained in the brutal mob attack on him in Imphal on May 4, 2023, during the early days of the ethnic violence. Valte had remained bedridden for nearly three years before passing away, making his funeral a politically and emotionally significant event.

The proposed visit would also have been Khemchand Singh's first visit to Churachandpur since the outbreak of the Meitei-Kuki ethnic conflict in May 2023.

As protests intensified, fresh violence was reported from Torbung, the last Meitei-majority village bordering Bishnupur and Churachandpur districts, one of the most sensitive flashpoints of the conflict. According to local reports, suspected Kuki militants allegedly opened fire from the Churachandpur side towards Torbung.

Security forces retaliated towards the direction from where the firing was reported, while additional reinforcements were rushed to the area. There was no immediate official confirmation of casualties or injuries.

Meanwhile, CRPF personnel moved into Churachandpur town to disperse protesters and secure key locations as demonstrations continued. Security deployment was significantly intensified across the district amid fears that the shutdown and fresh firing could trigger another escalation.

The developments come just ahead of Union Home Minister Amit Shah's high-level review of the security situation in Manipur. Shah is scheduled to chair a crucial meeting in New Delhi on Saturday with Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla, senior officials from the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Army, Assam Rifles, CRPF, BSF, Intelligence Bureau and Manipur Police. 

The meeting is expected to assess the prevailing law-and-order situation, review counter-insurgency and security operations, evaluate rehabilitation and relief measures for displaced people, and formulate the next course of action to restore lasting peace in the state.

The proposed visit by the Chief Minister had assumed added significance as it was expected to signal a political outreach to Churachandpur, a district that has remained largely inaccessible to the state leadership since the violence erupted. However, Kuki civil society organisations rejected the visit, asserting that confidence-building measures and justice for the affected communities must precede any such engagement.

Friday's shutdown, the reported firing at Torbung and the heavy deployment of central security forces once again highlighted the fragile security situation in Manipur, where sporadic violence continues despite sustained efforts by the Centre to restore normalcy more than three years after the ethnic conflict began.

ALSO READ: Amarnath Yatra 2026: Third Batch Leaves Jammu Under Multi-layer Security Grid, Second Batch Hits Pahalgam Track