Manipur discussion in Parliament on Aug 11 : Eyes on the two MPs
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: August 05, 2023 -

How well prepared are Lok Sabha MP RK Ranjan and Rajya Sabha MP Leishemba Sanajaoba to present the case of Manipur, when the ethnic violence here comes up for discussion on the floor of Parliament on August 11 ?

One certainly would not want to listen to rhetoric and half baked assertions when the issue comes up for discussion and this is where questions ought to be raised on whether the two MPs have got their records straight or any information that would help the case of Manipur.

Statistics don’t lie and the question is whether the two MPs have the figures that can and should negate the victim story that has been peddled around for too long.

The Parliament is the right place to set the record straight and for this, it is important that the correct information is supplied to them.

This is where the different civil society organisations which have been at the forefront batting for the existence of Manipur as a distinct geo-political reality should be in the position to supply or supplement the data available with them.

Go back to May 3, 2023 or the immediate days preceding May 3 and enlighten Parliament on the charged atmosphere under which the Tribal Solidarity March was held.

If possible present photographic evidences of gun toting elements taking part in the rally, which was otherwise taken out under the banner of a Tribal Solidarity March.

Highlight the fact too that violence broke out only at Churachandpur and quickly spread to Kangpokpi and Moreh while the said rally wounded up peacefully in the Naga dominated districts of Senapati, Chandel, Tamenglong and Ukhrul.

If it was a rally against any policy of the State Government then why target the houses of Meitei civilians at Torbung, for remember the trouble started at Torbung and the violence that erupted at Imphal and elsewhere was in retaliation to what happened at Torbung.

It was the burning of the Churches which was highlighted with so much effect that it figured in the European Parliament and this is where the two MPs would need to point out how places of worship of the Meiteis were first desecrated at Churachandpur and how Kondong Lairembi at Moreh was vandalised and dismantled.

The different CSOs should provide the needed figures of temples and places of worship of the Meiteis which have been desecrated.

Just talks will not do for it would be important for the two MPs to present facts backed by figures.

Present it on the floor of Parliament that Thanglian Pau, the president of the Zomi Revolutionary Army is a former Member of Parliament in Myanmar.

That the Centre is in talk with an outfit headed by a person of Myanmar origin is a point that needs to be presented in Parliament.

Present the facts and one can then see how Delhi responds to the facts and not merely to the extremely one sided stories that have been sold by the media of mainland India.

The issue is Manipur and it is important that the people representing the State on the floor of Parliament make a strong case for Manipur.

The issue should not be allowed to be hijacked by anyone and this is where it becomes important for all concerned to accept that MPs from Mizoram would probably make a strong pitch to realise their aspiration of a Greater Mizoram.

This move should be anticipated and the required steps should be taken up accordingly.

Of the three MPs from Manipur, one is a Naga, a community which has remained neutral, but it is important for Manipur and the different CSOs here to see what inputs he may give when the violence on Manipur comes up for discussion on the floor of Parliament.

As an MP representing the NPF from Outer Manipur, the position of Dr Lorho Pfoze on the question of illegal immigrants should be clear to all but it remains to be seen how Manipur goes about trying to capitalise on this.