• FAQ tells that in Northeast Scheduled Tribes who convert are still ST-twist in Manipur, ST given income-tax exemption and Impact, is it ok for Mizoram CM to take oath by starting with Bible, Hindu exodus from Meghalaya, Fatalities Northeast Insurgency 12,175 and is Apex Court view on ST flawed?

Six Ukranians and American Matthew Aaron VanDyke were recently (March 2026) arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

Matthew was arrested in Kolkata for allegedly training ethnic militants in Myanmar. Shashank Mattoo wrote in Hindustan Times, “The Kachin and Chin people seemed really serious about Christianity and fighting the mostly Buddhist military junta. His desire is to support Christian minority populations globally.” 

However, some have dismissed a connection between the seven arrested and drone bombings that hit Manipur in September 2024. If indeed the seven wanted to fight against the Buddhist government, they could have entered through Thailand or another direct route to Burma. Why use tourist visas to enter India to enter Mynamar? Source India Today

I went to Mizoram (2014) and had to, inspite of being Indian, get a Permit to enter the state!

This matters because in September 2025 a controversy surrounded “Daniel Stephen Courney, a 40-year-old American evangelist and former U.S. Army veteran who was in viral videos supplying Kuki militants with military-grade gear, including long-range surveillance drones, bulletproof vests, helmets, boots, etc. under the guise of humanitarian aid and Christian solidarity.” India Today

Government policies (across parties) have contributed to promoting Christianity in the Northeast with foreign elements playing a role. (U.S. is the largest donor to Indian NGO’s historically). Read this with news of the U.S. wanting St Martin’s island that erupted post S Hasina fleeing Bangladesh (2024) and form your opinion. ThePrint and ORF

Here are a few policies that contributed to Northeast becoming Xtan.

1. Scheduled Tribes who have converted to Christianity are still ST for govt

How can one be a ST and Christian? Why the Supreme Court accepts this is told in Q9. Having travelled across the northeast, noticed ST who convert are anything but ST, esp. in Xtan majority states of Nagaland, Mizoram, Meghalaya.

Thus, converted ST get reservations in government jobs, income-tax exemption, seats in educational institutes and scholarships and other benefits from central and state governments.

Kohima 2014. Except fair person, rest are Nagas.

2014. Christian Revival Convention Northeast India.

2013. Tribal children at Ramakrishna Mission School, Deomali, Arunachal.  

2. In Manipur there is a local twist.

The 2023 unrest in Manipur is attributed to a Manipur High Court order that declared Meitis as ST. This meant that Meitis could buy land in hill areas where ST Xtans have exclusive rights currently. Protests erupted. Currently ST Xtans can buy land in Imphal Valley and Hill areas but Meitis cannot buy land in hill areas. There is no level playing field between Meiti Hindus and ST Xtans. Hindustan Times 

3. Since Xtan ST are still ST, their income to the extent it arises in the Northeast is exempt from Income Tax.   

Section 10 (26) of the I.T. Act 2025 reads, “In the case of a member of a Scheduled Tribe as defined in clause (25) of article 366 of the Constitution, residing in any area specified in Part I or Part II of the Table appended to paragraph 20 of the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution or in the States of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura or in the areas covered by notification No. TAD/R/35/50/109, dated the 23rd February, 1951, issued by the Governor of Assam under the proviso to sub-paragraph (3) of the said paragraph 20 [as it stood immediately before the commencement of the North-Eastern Areas (Reorganisation) Act, 1971 (81 of 1971) or in the Ladakh region, any income which accrues or arises to him, (a) from any source in the areas or States aforesaid, or (b) by way of dividend or interest on securities is exempt.” Source IndianKanoon.org

According to Cleartax.in, “The exemption is not valid for the following income sources: Rental income from immovable property situated outside the stated areas, Income from any business activity conducted outside the stated areas and Investments or capital gains generated outside the area.”

In May 2025 a ST working with BSF, belonging to the Meena community of Rajasthan was granted tax exemption for the income earned during his posting Agartala (Tripura) by the Guwahati High Court. Assam Tribune.  One thought this section applied to northeast ST! Who shall tell Hon Judges that the Meena community ruled areas around Jaipur before the Kacchwa Rajputs. Read Our systems are wedded to the Colonial Constitution.

So also the former rulers of Tripura (music director R D Burman belonged to that family) are considered ST (Hindu) under India’s Colonial Constitution.  

Did you know that ace music director R D Burman was a ST. 

4. Impact of Tax exemption are manifold

It encourages conversions of ST to Christianity because they continue to avail of ST benefits. Conversions change demographics that might haunt India in years to come.

Two, it creates social tensions because in the same office in say Manipur a Meiti Hindu pays income-tax whilst a ST Christian does not.

Three, it encourages money laundering. I recalled this media report of a Bihar based businessman who flew into Nagaland from Haryana with 3.5 crs of old notes post demonetization. Read HERE

According to an India Today 2016 report, “The money, it is believed, belongs to a businessman from Bihar and was meant to be converted from black to white. And Anato Zhimomi was to help facilitate this conversion. Zhimomi is said to be an influential person considering his father-in-law, Neiphiu Rio, a Lok Sabha MP and three-time chief minister of Nagaland.” Also read Tribune Chandigarh report

5. Some try to justify support by Kukis, residing in India, to Kukis from Myanmar because they belong the same tribe.

“The Kuki-Zomi tribes are originally from Kuki-Chin hills in Myanmar.” According to a retired fauji the British brought Kukis from Burma, settled them all along the road (now highway) from Dimapur (in Nagaland) to Moreh so that Kukis could protect them from the Nagas.”

We need to realize that notwithstanding the tribe affinity, India and Myanmar are different countries with citizenship rules. Indian Kukis, be it in Manipur or Mizoram, can provide moral support to Kukis in Burma but supporting illegal immigration is unacceptable. It is one of the reasons for increasing social tensions in Manipur.

Further, it increases State and Central government spending because migrants are classified as ST and avail of numerous state benefits.

Tribals of Bastar 2018. Compare them with those in the northeast. 

Hatee ST of Himachal celebrating their recent declaration as ST.

6. Why has the government not restricted access of foreigners to Manipur, Nagaland, Meghalya and Mizoram?

During my 2014 visit, whilst driving from Imphal to Kohima saw this hoarding ‘Mao Baptist Church, Kalinamei’. A man from West Virginia Baptist Convention was to give a talk on January 16-18, 2015. I wondered why this respected man from the U.S. had to come all the way and why was he given permission?

During my 2014 visit found so many Jesuit schools in Imphal. In fact, when I visited Ramakrishna Mission School in Agartala met some parents from Manipur who complained they came all the way due to lack of Indic schools in the state. It is only recently that RKM have opened a Centre in Manipur though not known if a school is functional. If Mrs Indira Gandhi could encourage RKM to open a school in Along, Arunachal Pradesh in the 1960s what prevents this BJP led government from doing so.

4

I am unable to comment on the impact on the recent FCRA crackdown on NGO’s in the northeast that receive contributions from the West.

7. May be for the sake of Peace, the Chief Minister’s oath ceremony starting with Bible reading in Mizoram is acceptable.  

“Mizo National Front is set to take oath in a predominantly Christian ceremony on Saturday, making it a first for a government in Mizoram.
Apart from readings of Biblical verses, religious hymns like Handel's famed 'Hallelujah Chorus' will be sung to mark the occasion. "We are doing it for the first time," Lalruatkima, a newly-elected MNF legislator, said on Thursday, adding, “Singing of gospel and reading of verses from the Bible will follow the national anthem.” Times of India

“Rev R Lalhmingthanga, Chairman of Mizoram Kohhran Hruaitute Committee (MKHC), a conglomerate of 16 major churches in the state, read out from the Bible and offered prayers. “For the first time in history, we started the ceremony with Bible reading and prayers, while we conclude with Hallelujah Chorus,” said Zoramthanga. Indian Express

What about Secularism? Truth BJP wants peace in the Northeast and SC Judges might not know the reality! Read  Christianization of the Northeast – It all began on Independence Eve “Much of the Christian expansion in the Northeast occurred on the eve of Independence during 1931-51, perhaps largely during 1941-51. That expansion has continued unabated since 1951.”

Have you heard of a Mizo Marriage, Divorce and Inheritance of Property Act, 2014? A new law protects Mizo men but not women so they petitioned the SC. Note that Mizos have converted to Christianity yet they are considered as Mizo tribe. So also in Dimapur, Nagaland an issue arose about whether the children born from a Bangladeshi man and a Naga tribe woman were ST or not? I do not know what was eventually decided? Such matters are rarely covered in main stream print media so we are unable to know the social complexities of ST Xtans.

8. Current India knows little about the exodus, deaths, insurgency in the Northeast

This part has links to South Asia Terrorism Portal below for e.g. Overview read Insurgency  Northeast – An Overview 2024 (Mizoram has remained free of insurgency-related violence since 2015, but the State continues to be disturbed by rising incidents of weapons and explosives smuggling). For Fatalities from 1992 to June 2018 (21,602 lives) for each north eastern state read Here

Table 1 - Fatalities North-east States 2000 to 2/5/26 per SATP.org

While the fatalities are less than Jammu and Kashmir, they are significant. For reading about State-wise Assessment 2025 by SATP refer to Also read at end.

Now sharing excerpts from published reports on exodus from Meghalaya, cause of insurgency in Tripura and Mizoram along with resolution.

Amrita wrote in the Indian Express about Bengali exodus from Meghalaya, “After nearly 50 years of living in this city, where they had children, made friends and lasting connections, wove the web of their life, my parents are leaving home. In another month, they will follow an entire generation of Bengalis of Meghalaya, who flowed out of Shillongs consciousness in quiet trickles ever since. After the state was formed in 1972, the resentment of the native Khasis grew against other communities, and was exploited by politicians. A few years later, a law made it illegal for non-tribal residents to buy land. The riots of 1979, 1987 and 1992, which targeted Bengalis, Biharis among others, sharpened the division between the Khasi and the dkhar, the term used dismissively of other communities. The violence was followed by an exodus, which continued through the 1980s and 1990s.”

I asked a late and leading Bengali economist, who had grown up in Shillong, to write about the family exodus. Before he could write, he passed away.

Former Governor of Tripura D N Sahaya from 2003 to 2009 wrote in The Hindu, “The evolution of insurgency in Tripura can be traced to the formation of the Tripura Upajati Juba Samiti (TUJS) in 1971, followed by the Tripura National Volunteers (TNV) in 1981. The National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) was formed on March 2, 1989 and its armed wing, the National Holy Army and All Tripura Tiger Force (ATTF), in July 1990, queering the pitch. The two outfits came up with a secessionist agenda, disputed the merger of the kingdom of Tripura with the Indian Union, demanded sovereignty for Tripura, deportation of “illegal migrants,” the implementation of the Tripura merger agreement and the restoration of land to the tribal people under the Tripura Land Reform Act, 1960.”

“Between 1990 and 1995, the insurgency remained low-key. But it grew in extent and magnitude between 1996 and 2004 — and then started melting. What gave punch to the insurgency was striking logistic and monetary prowess acquired from the rough, rugged terrain, and the porous and extensive trans-border corridors with Bangladesh.”

“Tripura scripted a story of triumph over insurgency and conflict-resolution. What was needed to tackle it was a well-crafted, multi-dimensional strategy, a positive mindset, resolute will, the right vision and direction, sagacious, honest and credible leadership, sincerity of intent, creative responses to the challenge, even socio-economic-infrastructure dispensation to all sections of society, and modulated and humane combat operations intertwined with psychological operations to set a change in the psyche of the turbulent mind.”

Dr Anand Ranganthan wrote about Mizoram in Newslaundry.com, “The Mautam of 1959, however, was particularly violent, not only in the damage that it caused, but also because of its political repercussion. It was the last domino to topple, and it carried with it the momentum of all previous tragedies and resentments.”

“The Mizo District Council, as a precautionary measure to tame Mautam’s aftermath, pleaded with the government of Assam – under whose administrative and geographical control it fell – for a paltry sum of Rs 150,000. Assam turned the request down. It dismissed Mautam as a mere tribal superstition. What it got in return was a revolt, a revolt that led to an insurgency that lasted a quarter of a century.”

“The non-political organisation, Mizo National Famine Front, transformed into Mizo National Front, or MNF. More was to come. In 1964, the Assam Regiment disbanded its 2nd battalion, composed predominantly of the Hill people. The soldiers who lost their jobs promptly joined the MNF to form its military wing: the Mizo National Army” 

“Then, in 1986, against all expectations, the stakeholders rose above conflict, egos, and bitterness. A Peace Accord was signed between the MNF and the government of India.”

I have deliberately not referred to the role of Missionaries before and after 1947 is converting tribals of the northeast. That is a separate topic in itself. Surely, they significantly contributed to Christianising the Northeast. The Government of India is to blame too but may be post-Independence the priorities and challenges were different.

Did Missionaries convert out of love for tribals?

Let us see if the Home Ministry can pass a law that Scheduled Tribes who convert are no longer ST under all laws.

8. SC order-Why a ST who converts to Islam/Christianity is still ST?

Para 30 of 2025 SC order – “A person can claim benefits under the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950 only if he/she continues to belong to that particular tribe in substance. If, due to conversion or long-term abandonment of tribal customs, his/her tribal identity is in doubt, that question becomes a factual matter to be determined at trial.” 9

Who is going to determine state by state across India is a particular tribe is following its customs.

Parents of late Payal Tadvi ST whose family converted to Islam is considered ST. Have they retained their tribal identity? 

Gawri Festival celebrated by Bhil ST, is about the worship of Gauri n Shiva. 

The purpose of this article is to provoke thought and not offend any community or individual. Love. As always am happy to stand corrected.   

Also read

1. Reasons for Violence in Manipur

2. Why Kukki tribes are opposed to CM 2023 article

3. Observations during visit to Nagaland and Implications  

4. What India should learn from the Manipur Ambush

5. Nagaland: Insurgency and Factional Intransigence

6. Manipur: A Degenerated Insurgency

7. Who are Scheduled Tribes

8. Christianization of the Northeast – It all began on Independence Eve

9. SC order of 24/3/2025 Criminal Appeal 1580 of 2026

10. Assessment Arunachal Pradesh 2025 - Fatalities 2000 to 2/5/26 were 255

11. Assessment Manipur 2025  - Fatalities 2000 to 2/5/26 were 3964

12. Assessment Meghalaya 2025 – Fatalities 2000 to 2/5/26 were 648. “The unfenced Indo-Bangladesh border compounds security concerns. Disputes over fencing have delayed border management, allowing for illegal infiltration.”

13. Assessment Mizoram 2025 - Fatalities 2000 to 2/5/26 were 39. “According to a report by state disaster management and rehabilitation officials on December 23, 2024, there were a total of 32,794 Myanmar refugees in Mizoram as on December 18, 2024. Cross-border insurgent movements in Mizoram remain a significant security concern, primarily due to its porous and challenging border with Myanmar.”

14. Assessment Nagaland 2025 - Fatalities 2000 to 2/5/26 were 833. “Second, internal divisions within Naga political groups, particularly between NSCN-IM and other Naga factions, have further complicated the peace process. Divergent demands, especially regarding a separate Naga constitution and flag, have stalled negotiation.”

15. Assessment Tripura 2025 - Fatalities 2000 to 2/5/26 were 1348. “The influx of illegal migrants along the border, part of the larger border crisis across India's Northeast, needs to be addressed at the earliest, as it constitutes a serious security threat.” 

16. Assessment Assam 2025 - Fatalities 2000 to 2/5/26 were 5088