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New Delhi: Three years after ethnic violence broke out in Manipur on May 3, 2023, the state remains mired in conflict, with a new anxiety now compounding the humanitarian and political crisis. As the Election Commission of India (ECI) prepares to conduct a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, Kuki, Zomi and Hmar communities are raising concerns over the risks posed by a house-to-house voter verification drive in a state where thousands have been displaced.

Preparations for the exercise are well underway. The ECI will begin the third phase of SIR in Manipur from May 20, with around 2,996 Booth Level Officers (BLOs) carrying out door-to-door verification and enumeration from May 30-June 28. According to a press note issued by the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer Manipur, the draft electoral roll is scheduled to be published on July 5. Claims and objections will be addressed until September 2, following which the final roll will be released on September 6, 2026. Manipur currently has over 20.9 lakh registered voters.

The exercise comes at a stressful time when a fresh wave of violence in the conflict-torn state has deepened ethnic fault lines and rattled the fragile law-and-order situation. On May 13, three tribal church leaders of the Thadou Baptist Association of India (TBAI) and the United Baptist Council (UBC), were killed in an ambush between Kotlen and Kotzim villages in Kangpokpi district while returning from a Baptist convention. The attack has been attributed to the Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF)-Kamson faction, who have denied the claim.

A separate attack on the same day, allegedly by an armed Kuki group,........

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