India: Ethnic Tensions Spur Citizens to Seek Refuge Abroad

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Last updated: 3 June 2026

Photo: India - Improved or Not Improved - Wat/San Photo Catalogue

India's diversity encompasses hundreds of ethnic, linguistic, and tribal communities, several of which face acute conflict and state-sponsored marginalisation. Ethnic tensions in India have produced some of the most severe humanitarian crises of recent years, most notably the Manipur violence of 2023, which displaced over 60,000 people and drew international condemnation. From the northeast to Assam to Kashmir, ethnic and communal conflict is a significant driver of internal displacement and asylum claims abroad.[1]

The Manipur Crisis: Meitei-Kuki-Zo Violence

In May 2023, ethnic violence erupted in the northeastern state of Manipur between the Meitei community — the valley-dwelling majority — and the Kuki-Zo tribal communities of the hills. The immediate trigger was a High Court order suggesting the Meitei community should receive Scheduled Tribe status, which Kuki-Zo groups feared would threaten their land rights and affirmative action protections.[2]

The violence was systematic and widespread. Over 220 people were killed. More than 60,000 were displaced. Churches, homes, and villages were burned. A viral video showing two Kuki-Zo women being paraded naked by a mob drew global condemnation. The Indian Supreme Court took suo motu cognizance of the situation, criticising the state government's response. However, accountability for perpetrators has been limited, and security force conduct has itself been questioned.[3]

The violence in Manipur represents one of the worst episodes of ethnic cleansing in India in recent decades. The state's failure to protect minority communities is deeply troubling.
United Nations Human Rights Office, August 2023

Internet shutdowns lasting over 200 days were imposed in Manipur, limiting the flow of information and hindering documentation of abuses. Kuki-Zo groups and Meitei communities both called for separate administrative arrangements, signalling the depth of the rift. Displaced Kuki-Zo families in relief camps reported that return to their villages remains impossible.

Assam: Statelessness and the NRC

In Assam, the National Register of Citizens (NRC) process — finalised in 2019 — excluded approximately 1.9 million people from the citizenship register. Critics note that the process was error-prone, excluded many long-settled Bengali Hindus and Muslims, and disproportionately affected women, minorities, and the poor who lacked documentary evidence of citizenship.[4]

Excluded individuals face potential statelessness and detention in Assam's Foreigners' Tribunals. Detention camps hold individuals for years without criminal conviction. In addition, Assam has experienced periodic ethnic violence between indigenous Bodo communities and Bengali Muslim settlers, with the state's land allocation policies exacerbating tensions.

Northeast India: Ongoing Insurgencies

Northeast India — comprising Assam, Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Arunachal Pradesh — has experienced ethnic insurgencies for decades. The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) remains in force in parts of the region, granting security forces broad immunity from prosecution.[5]

Naga peace talks between the government and the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-IM) have stalled repeatedly since the 2015 Framework Agreement. Bodo groups, Karbi militants, and others have signed peace accords with varying degrees of implementation. In this environment, civilians from targeted ethnic groups face harassment, extortion, and violence from both state and non-state actors.

Implications for Asylum and Protection Claims

Individuals from Manipur's Kuki-Zo communities, Assam's stateless populations, and other ethnically targeted groups may have compelling protection claims under the 1951 Refugee Convention's grounds of race, ethnicity, religion, or membership of a particular social group.[6] The scale and systematic nature of violence in Manipur in particular meets the threshold for serious harm under UK, EU, and Australian protection frameworks.

Internal relocation arguments are particularly difficult to sustain for individuals from the northeast, where AFSPA zones overlap with areas of ethnic conflict, and where communities are geographically concentrated. Decision-makers should engage with specific state-level country of origin information rather than applying generalised assessments of India as a whole.

Expert country witnesses with northeast India expertise can be found in our expert witness directory. Our India country reports and India asylum guide provide further practitioner support.

Conclusion

Ethnic tensions in India are not peripheral — they affect millions of people in multiple states. The Manipur crisis exposed the Indian state's failure to protect tribal minorities even when violence is large-scale and documented. The Assam NRC process has created a statelessness crisis with long-term consequences. For asylum practitioners, this background demands careful, state-specific analysis rather than blanket country-level conclusions.

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