MP Election in Outer Manipur: The KNO-UPA Factor
By Caleb Thangbuong *
The very fact that the Indian National Congress till date has not been able to come out with an official candidate for the outer Manipur Parliamentary Constituency is a proof that selection of a consensus candidate is not easy as anticipated.
Some, if not all, of the following factors would have played havoc with the thinking process or the election strategies of the INC in their inability to come out with a clear candidate at this crucial juncture.
18 armed groups of the tribals of outer Manipur parliamentary constituency are engaged in an active talk with the GOI and even agreed and implemented 'suspension of operation'(SoO) to cater a favourable ground conditions for future talks for lasting agreements of the tribal inhabited areas of Manipur under two major group namely United Peoples Front (UPF) and Kuki National Organisation (KNO).
It is clear that the collective leadership of the UPF and the KNO would have an immediate leaning towards a party whose government (read INC) initiated a historic step and a road map for achieving lasting peace and development in the tribal areas for which the KNO and UPF had been fighting for decades.
At the same time looking at the present situation in the light of the past issues/atrocities and problems in the hill areas of Manipur, supporting a Naga Congress candidate would mean betraying the emotions and feelings of the non-naga masses which the UPF and KNO would no-way risk.
At the same time, as one Hmar leader stated; "There is a strong feeling among the Hmars of Manipur that whatever it be, the upcoming election is a chance, particularly for the Hmars, as the only major tribes that had not sent a representative in the Parliament of India.
He went on to say that "The Hmars had untiringly and faithfully, for the past many years, had played a role in minimizing if not brokering peace in the past inter-tribe clashes and conflicts.
Moreover, the Hmar people , as a community, even went ahead in reviving and leading am already defunct and unfunctionable inter-tribe organizations like ATSUM, which were thought to be biased for a particular group or community at the height of the Naga-Kuki clash, Kuki-Zomi conflict."
Therefore, it all depends on the strategy that the INC decides to adopt in contesting this small yet very crucial parliamentary constituency in terms of peace in the international boundary of the North East State of India. The onus is with the INC now.
They either choose to contest a two corner election by nominating a non-Naga candidate or settle for a three corner contest with the INC-UNC-NON-Naga Candidate.
The result and its fall-out/consequences would depend on who the congress chooses as a candidate.
Meanwhile, on the voting day it will be the UPF and the KNO who calls the shots here, yes right here in the South District of Manipur where a good majority of voters live.
* Caleb Thangbuong, Churachandpur, writes for the first time to e-pao.net . The writer can be contacted at calebthangbuong(at)yahoo(dot)com
This article was webcasted at e-pao.net on 01st April 2009.
* Comments posted by users in this discussion thread and other parts of this site are opinions of the individuals posting them (whose user ID is displayed alongside) and not the views of e-pao.net. We strongly recommend that users exercise responsibility, sensitivity and caution over language while writing your opinions which will be seen and read by other users. Please read a complete Guideline on using comments on this website.