The Kuki National Organisation (KNO), an umbrella group representing armed Kuki organisations that is engaged in peace talks with the Centre, has alleged that the insurgent group National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM) is trying to divert attention from its internal problems by creating a false narrative that the ongoing ethnic conflict in Manipur is a Naga-Kuki conflict.Dr Sailen Haokip, spokesperson for the KNO, told mediapersons in the national capital recently that the unrest in the northeastern state since May 2023 was not a Naga-Kuki conflict. He alleged that the NSCN-IM was attempting to divert attention from its internal issues and revive its support base in the hill districts of Manipur.Haokip made the remarks when asked about the recent involvement of the Naga community in the more than three-year-old Meitei-Kuki conflict in the state. Over the past few months, the conflict in Manipur has expanded, with violence escalating between sections of the Naga and Kuki communities.The KNO spokesperson referred to the clashes between Naga and Kuki communities in the 1990s, when violence spread across several hill districts of Manipur. However, he said the current situation was different, with communities in the hills now more aware of the consequences of violence.He alleged that the NSCN-IM was attempting to recreate the situation witnessed in the 1990s. He urged the Centre to intervene and deal with the Naga insurgent group to prevent further escalation of violence, warning that otherwise it could fuel animosity between the Kuki and Naga communities, which, he said, does not currently exist.The NSCN-IM, the largest Naga insurgent group, signed a ceasefire agreement with the Centre in 1997. In 2015, it signed a framework agreement with the government to find a political solution to its demands.Meanwhile, the United People’s Front (UPF), another umbrella group representing Kuki armed organisations that have signed the Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement with the Centre, alleged that recently deployed CoBRA battalions of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in Manipur were targeting camps of Kuki outfits covered by the agreement.Talking to the media, UPF spokesperson Aron Kipgen criticised the raids by security forces on SoO camps, alleging that the operations were carried out without provocation. He contended that such actions violated established ground rules requiring coordination with the local police and adherence to the terms of the agreement.