evidence: Further, the ST demand for the Meitei community upheld by the High Court was seen as yet another but a much more formidable attempt to deprive the Kukis of their land, resources, and livelihood by the dominant section of the Meitei community, which armed by the newfound ST status would oust them from their homeland. [...] The tribal groups especially the Kuki community fear that granting ST status to Meiteis would lead to loss of job opportunities and allow them to acquire land in the hills, pushing the tribal people out of their traditional homelands. The way the hill communities have historically been treated by the Manipur government has pushed these communities to see the demand for ST status as a ploy to counterfoil the political demands of the Kukis and Nagas with a tacit strategy of the majority community’s elites to make inroads into the hill areas.