Good beginning, talks to proceed: Manipur CM on meeting with Kuki Zo Council delegation

Manipur CM Y Khemchand Singh calls meeting with Kuki Zo Council a positive step towards restoring peace and trust.

Manipur Chief Minister Y Khemchand Singh on Sunday (March 22, 2026) said his meeting with a Kuki Zo Council delegation was a "good beginning" at restoring peace in the State and rebuilding trust between Meiteis and Kukis.

A day after holding the closed-door meeting with the delegation in Guwahati, he told reporters here that "the talk between the Kuki Zo Council (KZC) and the state government for the first time in nearly three years is a really good thing".

"The talks will proceed," the Chief Minister said.

More than 260 people have been killed and thousands rendered homeless in ethnic violence between Meiteis and Kuki-Zo groups since May 2023.

The KZC, in a statement on Sunday (March 22), said the meeting commenced at 7 p.m. on Saturday and lasted around 1 hour and 45 minutes. The interaction was largely an ice-breaking session, it said.

Addressing the media on Sunday, the Chief Minister said, "In Manipur's situation, the most saddening part is that internally displaced persons (IDPs) are unable to return to their native homes...”