Sangai Festival begins in Manipur amid protest

The Sangai Festival in Manipur began on Friday (November 21, 2025) amid a protest by internally displaced persons (IDPs) and members of NGOs, impacting attendance.

Many are opposing the annual festival, held after two years, as they feel the State government should have resolved the ethnic conflict and resettled the IDPs before organising tourism events. The ethnic conflict between the tribal Kuki-Zo and the non-tribal Meitei communities broke out on May 3, 2023.

The protesters clashed with the police for the second successive day on Friday after they tried to storm the festival venue in the State’s capital, Imphal. The police fired tear gas shells to restore order after the protestors pelted stones at them.

The clashes occurred amid a “cease work” by the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), a Meitei pressure group leading the protest. The organisation criticised the State administration operating under President’s Rule for pushing forward an “anti-people” festival.

Ahead of the protest, Manipur’s Rajya Sabha member and titular king Leishemba Sanajaoba accused an IPS officer of storming onto his residential compound.

On Thursday (November 20, 2025), the MP lodged a written complaint with Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla, alleging that IGP (Zone-I) Themthing Ngashangva had barged into his residential compound at around 1:30 p.m. and threatened security personnel after claiming that he (MP) was sheltering the IDPs.

The Manipur police said a mob of approximately 50-60 individuals, identified as COCOMI volunteers, took out a march carrying placards and shouting slogans opposing the festival, defying prohibitory orders issued by the Imphal East district authorities.

“Security personnel made repeated attempts to stop and peacefully disperse the protestors. IGP (Zone–I) Themthing Ngashangva was on the scene supervising the situation. Police teams, including women personnel, repeatedly tried to stop and disperse the group,” the police said in a statement.

The statement further said that the mob turned violent, throwing water bottles and placards at the police while a woman protestor assaulted the IGP and used derogatory racial slurs while he was performing his duty.

“The mob later moved toward the palace premises, where house guards of the Hon’ble MP allowed them inside, hindering police efforts. The IGP approached the gate to question the action of the house guards. He did not enter the premises of the palace,” the police said.

Stating that a criminal case has been registered, the police said that efforts were underway to identify the woman protester who assaulted the IGP.

The protests resulted in thin attendance on the opening day of the festival, which the Governor inaugurated.

The last Sangai Festival was held before the ethnic conflict in Manipur that claimed more than 260 lives and displaced some 62,000 others. The State was placed under President’s Rule on February 13, after the BJP failed to reach a consensus on a successor to Nongthombam Biren Singh, who resigned as Chief Minister on February 9.