Ethnic Conflict, Displacement, and the Politics of Belonging: The Case of the Bru Community in Northeast India

This article examines the displacement of Bru community in Northeast India. Tracing its origins from ethnic violence in Mizoram in October 1997, it explores the historical context, political dynamics and implications of Bru community’s resettlement in Tripura as internally displaced persons (IDPs). Situating the Bru experience within the wider ethnopolitics in Northeast India, the paper highlights the interplay of ethnicity, conflict, and community’s quest for belonging and identity. Drawing on ethnographic methods, the study reveals a complex duality: while the 2020 resettlement initiatives offered housing and citizenship, it also generates new uncertainties—fractured identity, fragile belonging, and an ambiguous political future.