A few days ago, CRPF seized 27 kg of raw opium from a vehicle on the Tiddim highway at Kangvai junction in Churachandpur district in the midst of the tense ethnic strife between Kuki-Zo and Meitei communities. And the two persons transporting the said contraband turned out to be Meitei Pangals from Kwakta Ward Number V, Bishnupur district which is adjacent to Kangvai. Where did they procure such a big consignment of opium is left to everyone’s imagination. Well, the point of origin points to the hub of poppy farming.
We thought the illegal drug route had shifted to Mizoram in view of the violence happening in Manipur. But, it is business as usual. On 10 July, another two Meitei Pangals were apprehended by Meira Paibis of Khangabok Part-III Cherapur Khunou Leikai along with Heroin No 4. These are but two instances where the contraband had been detected. Many more consignments must have slipped through the dragnet.
Among the drug couriers apprehended by police and other central agencies, majority of them are Meitei Pangals while those of Kuki-Zo community come second.
As a matter of fact, not all drug consignments seized are from across the border, that is, the infamous Golden Triangle. Some drug consignments are sourced here. The proliferation of home-grown drug manufacturing units within the boundaries of the state itself has been a matter of concern. Most of the illegal drug manufacturing units are in either Churachandpur or Thoubal district.
Thoubal district seems to be the epicentre of illegal drug production in the state going by the seizures and arrests. And Churachandpur is a distant second. Besides the regular police, other agencies like the specialised unit of Manipur Police NAB, NCB and even Assam Rifles troops have been regularly raiding and busting such manufacturing units for quite some time now. It has also become evident that drug cartels based in Manipur have become major suppliers of brown sugar, heroin and other synthetic drugs across the country.
Now about the concentration of illegal drug manufacturing units in Thoubal district, it is mostly in the Meitei Pangal or Muslim-dominated areas. Another matter of importance is the open defiance of Meitei Pangals whenever police go on a raid of the said drug laboratories and suspected wholesalers or peddlers of drugs including synthetic ones. Police had to call in reinforcements or take the help of security forces in such raids, as people from the said localities often form mobs and try to thwart the efforts of police. This happens in the case of most other raids by police.
The most recent drug seizure is from two Meitei Pangals of Kwakta, located adjacent to Churachandpur district and the epicentre of recent violence. Three Meitei villagers, including a father-son duo were brutally murdered by Kuki militants recently which led to more violence and retaliation. That, the local councillor who is a Meitei Pangal had assured the Meitei villagers that nothing will happen to them, has raised suspicions casting aspersions on the loyalty of the Meitei Pangals in the present conflict.
Not only that, others from the said community had been accosted by Meira Paibis while trying to transport ration and other essentials for the Kukis. This could be interpreted as a humanitarian gesture, but in times of tension and conflict one needs to be extra careful.
Two mainstream Muslim apex bodies had now come out openly calling for avoiding such unwanted activities on the part of Meitei Pangals and even promised punitive action against them. On the other hand, if the Meitei Pangals are really sincere they could try their hand in easing the bad blood between the communities.
