A woman who was previously arrested in Manipur last year for possessing an expired Norwegian passport and Indian e-visa has now been identified as a high-ranking member of a Myanmar-based insurgent group, according to sources familiar with the matter. The insurgent group is reportedly engaged in a fight against the junta in Myanmar’s Chin State, situated near Mizoram and Manipur.
The woman, identified as Mya Kyay Mon, 52, was spotted acting suspiciously at a market in Imphal, Manipur’s capital, on October 23. Upon further investigation, it was discovered that she had been residing in Manipur with expired documents, raising questions about her motives and activities in the violence-stricken region.
Due to the ongoing ethnic tensions between the Meiteis and the Kuki tribes, the police in Imphal were on high alert. When they apprehended Ms. Mon, she presented her travel documents which were found to be expired. Consequently, she was taken into custody and has been held at a foreigners detention center since then, as per the orders of the Manipur government.
While Ms. Mon claims that she had come to Imphal for a legal case related to her expired documents, the police are exploring other possibilities. One senior police officer, who wishes to remain anonymous, revealed that they are investigating the allegation that she is a key member of a Myanmar-based insurgent group and that she has links with armed elements in Churachandpur, a hill district.
This development has shed light on the involvement of various insurgent groups in Manipur’s ethnic violence. Around 25 Kuki insurgent groups have signed an agreement to suspend operations with the central and state governments. However, these groups, along with certain civil society organizations in Imphal, have faced scrutiny for their alleged participation in the violence that has led to over 180 deaths and the displacement of thousands.
After her bail release in February, Ms. Mon was taken into custody by Manipur Police and detained in the central jail. Subsequently, a local human rights organization, HRA, assisted her in finding a women’s shelter home in Imphal. Mr. Babloo Loitongbam, the executive director of HRA, clarified that they had provided legal and humanitarian services to Ms. Mon as a woman in distress. He further stated that they had no prior knowledge of her before her arrest.
In response to media reports, Mr. Loitongbam clarified that HRA had brought Ms. Mon’s case to the attention of the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Delhi, resulting in the issuance of a fresh Norwegian passport to her. He also mentioned that they had arranged an air ticket for her to leave Manipur when the shelter home expressed discomfort in accommodating her. According to Mr. Loitongbam, Ms. Mon had been summoned by the court for her pending trial in Manipur.
In her statement to the media, Ms. Mon claimed that she had left Manipur in May due to the outbreak of ethnic violence. She resided in Delhi for two months before spending four weeks in Punjab. From there, she traveled to Rajasthan and then Kolkata, eventually returning to Imphal on October 23. However, the authenticity of her statement could not be independently verified.
The Manipur ethnic violence, primarily driven by the demand for Scheduled Tribes inclusion by the Meiteis, has also been attributed to the entry of illegal immigrants. Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Foreign Minister S Jaishankar, among other leaders, have emphasized the role of illegal immigration in fueling unrest in the state. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is currently investigating an alleged transnational conspiracy involving terrorist groups operating in Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Manipur, seeking to exploit the ethnic violence in the region.
