The 10-day-long Sangai Festival began on Friday afternoon in Imphal amid continuing protests by internally displaced persons (IDPs) and organisations against the hosting of the mega tourism event.

The inauguration of the festival by governor A.K. Bhalla took place within hours of the IDPs and the police getting involved in a scuffle.

The IDPs tried to march towards the main venue of the festival in Imphal East district, prompting police personnel to resort to lathi charge and fire tear gas shells to disperse the crowd.

The Sangai Festival has been organised after a gap of two years because of the conflict between the Kuki-Zos and Meiteis that erupted on May 3, 2023, leaving over 260 dead and 60,000 displaced. Those protesting against the event want the resettlement of the IDPs and restoration of normality first.

Multiple sources said that the inaugural event “was mostly attended by government employees and officials and their families, and there was no positive buzz about the festival”.

Television visuals from the event ground showed lot of jostling, police firing tear gas shells and IDPs venting their anger at the administration under President’s Rule for going ahead with the festival to project a “all is well in Manipur” picture.

The IDPs living across relief camps in Imphal Valley also staged a sit-in protest against the tourism festival.

Visuals also showed an injured policeman being led away from the crowd by two persons and another policeman being surrounded by the protesters.

Sources said tension flared up in the neighbouring Meitei-majority Bishnupur district by the evening when a group of IDPs tried to march to their homes in and around Churachandpur, a Kuki-Zo-majority district. Security forces had to resort to firing tear gas shells to disperse the group.

Sources said the IDPs demanded that they be allowed to return to their homes if the state had returned to normal as being projected.

An IDP in Imphal said they were “not” afraid to die because they have “nothing” to lose.

“We don’t have any address. The Centre and state government are trying to promote tourism, but we are living in relief camps for over two years. We don’t want this dikhawa (to show off that there is peace and normalcy),” he said.

Imphal residents said the situation is back to what it was six-seven months ago when regular protests was a common sight.

The protesters in Imphal included the general public and supporters of the “cease work and stay-at-home” call given by the influential Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (Cocomi), which is backing the IDPs’ protest against the hosting of the event.

Most of Imphal Valley remained shut on Friday, the second day since the general strike called by a rebel group on Wednesday, also against the hosting of the festival.

Security measures have been tightened in Imphal and Bishnupur.