Kuki Rebellion of 1917–1919

The Kuki Rebellion or Anglo-Kuki War,^[3] was one of the major tribal revolts during the British colonial rule in India. It was a rebellion by the Kuki tribes of Manipur, ostensibly to resist their forcible recruitment into labour corps for the First World War. From a wider historical perspective, it can also be read as a response to the colonial intrusion into Kuki livelihoods, with new forms of economic relations and land policies, as well as the declining authority of Kuki chiefs.^[3] The British suppressed the rebellion after two years of fighting, burning 126 villages, destruction of food-stocks, and killing and maiming many of the Kuki community.^[3] During 2017–2019, the Kuki community of Manipur arranged centennial commemorations for the event at multiple locations in Manipur.^[4] Their celebration of the event as a "war" came into contestation by the Meitei and Naga communities of Manipur.^[4]

Kuki Rebellion of 1917-19 Anglo-Kuki War
Location Manipur, Naga Hills, North Cachar Hills, Chin Hills, Kabaw Valley, Somra Tract Result Rebellion suppressed
Belligerents
British Raj	Kuki tribes of Manipur and Myanmar
Strength
6,234	unknown
Casualties and losses
60 killed 142 wounded 97 died of disease	120 killed (est.) 126 villages burned
[1][2]

Disputes on terminology

Several Naga groups of Manipur opposed the term "Anglo Kuki War",^[5][6] holding that the conflict between the British and the Kukis was a "rebellion" as mentioned in British records, rather than a war.^[6] They requested the Government of Manipur to stop the commemoration events of the "Anglo-Kuki War".^[7]

In October 2019, the Meitei civil society organisation Federation of Haomee sent a memorandum to Union home minister Amit Shah, and claimed that Shah had supported their demands.^[8] Subsequently the Manipur Government ordered the destruction of all the recently erected centenary monuments mentioning "Anglo-Kuki War".^[6][5] In 2020, a monolith that mentioned "Anglo-Kuki War" was forced to change it to "Kuki Rising".^[9]

In August 2023, in the midst of unprecedented ethnic violence in the state of Manipur that has seen over 50,000 people displaced, Federation of Haomee has registered two FIRs against authors that have written books mentioning "Anglo-Kuki War". Retired colonel Vijay Chenji, who wrote a book titled The Anglo-Kuki War 1917-1919, JNU academics Jangkhomang Guite and Thongkholal Haokip, who edited a volume titled The Anglo- Kuki War, 1917-1919: A Frontier Uprising against Imperialism during the First World War, were accused under section 120/121/123/153-A/200/120-8 of IPC. The complaint claimed that there was no Anglo-Kuki War in Manipur's history and the authors had lied.^[10][11]

See also

• Bhumij rebellion
• Indian Rebellion of 1857
• Kol rebellion
• Santhal rebellion

Notes

References

1. Lunkhopao, Empire of Violence (2021), p. 76.
2. Guite & Haokip, The Anglo-Kuki War (2019), Introduction, p. 2.
3. Wouters, Jelle J.P. (2019), "The Anglo-Kuki war, 1917-1919: a frontier uprising against imperialism during the First World War (book review)", Asian Ethnicity, 20 (4): 578–580, doi:10.1080/14631369.2019.1619445, S2CID 181819124
4. Haokip, T. S. (22 October 2020). "Was it an uprising or a war?". Outlook.
5. "Manipur: Kuki militants write to PM Modi over 'Anglo-Kuki War' claim tussle". The Indian Express. 16 October 2019. The Naga bodies claimed that the Kukis are trying to twist the history for there has been no 'Anglo-Kuki War' but 'Kuki-Rebellion 1917'.
6. Haokip, T. S. (22 October 2020). "Was It An Uprising Or A War?". Outlook. The matter became tricky when many Manipur Naga Groups opposed the tag "Anglo Kuki War" and alleged that the fight against the British by the Kukis was just a rebellion as recorded in the British and Assam Rifles records. With only a few days left for the commemoration and the inauguration of the monoliths thereof, the Manipur state government directed all the monoliths to be destroyed.
7. "Four Naga tribes on 'Anglo-Kuki War' issue". MorungExpress. ... According to the four Naga tribe bodies, there was no "Anglo-Kuki War" in the history of Manipur. "There is Kuki Rebellion (1917-18) in the history. It was started in December 1917 and brought under control in November 1918, a period of about one year," the joint statement also pointed out. ...
8. "There was no Anglo-Kuki War of 1917-1919: Federation of Haomee". Imphal Free Press.
9. "UPRISING OR WAR?". Northeast Today. 22 October 2020. The monolith at C Aisan Village, which was to be dedicated by the CM in 2019 with the engraving, 'In defence of our ancestral land and freedom' was pulled down and the words changed - 'Anglo Kuki war' to 'Kuki Rising'. A commemoration programme with the changed engraving was organised on 17th of October 2020 and the CM of Manipur inaugurated the newly engraved monolith through Video Conference.
10. "FIRs against author, two academicians in Manipur for allegedly distorting state's history". Scroll.in. 11 August 2023.
11. "Manipur Police File FIR Against Writer, Editors of 2018 Book for 'Distorting State's History'". The Wire. 11 August 2023.

Bibliography

• "Plan of Operations against the Kuki rebels: Reports regarding the progress of the operations (Digitized Document)", indianculture.gov.in, National Archives of India, August 1919, retrieved 24 August 2023
• Guite, Jangkhomang; Haokip, Thongkholal, eds. (2019), The Anglo-Kuki War, 1917–1919: A Frontier Uprising against Imperialism during World War I, Routledge, ISBN 978-1-138-50704-3
  • Ningmuanching (2019), "'As Men of One Country': Rethinking the history of the Anglo-Kuki War", in Jangkhomang Guite; Thongkholal Haokip (eds.), The Anglo-Kuki War, 1917–1919: A Frontier Uprising against Imperialism during World War I, Routledge, pp. 168–197, ISBN 978-1-138-50704-3
• Guite, Jangkhomang (19–25 February 2011), "Monuments, Memory and Forgetting in Postcolonial North-East India", Economic and Political Weekly, 46 (8): 56–64, JSTOR 41151794
• Ngamjahao Kipgen; Doungul Letkhojam Haokip, eds. (2021), Against the Empire: Polity, Economy and Culture during the Anglo-Kuki War, 1917–1919, Routledge, ISBN 978-1-003-00065-5
  • Hanneng, David (2021), "From Co-operation to Coercion: The Anglo-Kuki War as a response to changing British geopolitics", in Ngamjahao Kipgen; Doungul Letkhojam Haokip (eds.), Against the Empire: Polity, Economy and Culture during the Anglo-Kuki War, 1917–1919, Routledge, pp. 53–70, ISBN 978-1-003-00065-5
  • Lunkhopao, Robert (2021), "Empire of Violence: Colonial state-making and frontier violence during the Anglo-Kuki War", in Ngamjahao Kipgen; Doungul Letkhojam Haokip (eds.), Against the Empire: Polity, Economy and Culture during the Anglo-Kuki War, 1917–1919, Routledge, pp. 71–90, ISBN 978-1-003-00065-5
• Shakespear, Colonel L. W. (1929), History of the Assam Rifles, London: Macmillan And Co – via archive.org