Oh! Manipur! Where Art Thou Heading to...?

By Pangamba777 *

I am really disturbed mentally and emotionally, nowadays, by the recent news of the dastardly assassination of an MCS officer, Dr. Thingnam Kishan Singh, along with his two subordinates, by some hoodlums.

For one, he was not only a powerhouse of a wealth of knowledge and original ideas but also an able prospective potential leader of the future of Manipur.

Two, he was a man who always carried MANIPUR in his heart wherever he went [courtesy to his brilliant writings and testimonials].

Three, pathetic and complete failure of the present government and its machinery to protect its high-profile employee. I mean, what can we expect more, as common man, when the government itself cannot protect the life of a committed high-profile employee... an MCS officer, to be precise?

It's extremely pathetic. As a matter of fact, and I guess, I would not be wrong in saying this, and it's a bit ironic too but it's true. In Manipur, the animals in the zoo are much more better taken care of than the precious human lives walking on the street.

I mean where in the world have we come to this abysmal point? As is anyone's guess, subsequent to any killing, the first thing the government would do is announce ex-gratia.

And as expected, the government has announced Rs. 10 lakh ex-gratia to the family of late Dr. Kishan. But is the amount of ex-gratia worth the life of the late Dr. Kishan?

And this, the government doesn't seem to understand. I mean, for how long this government, or for that matter, any government that comes to power in Manipur, will be distributing ex-gratia for a killed person, in a land where there is killings and murders every other single day?

Now, my heart becomes calloused seeing these dead men pictures on the front pages of Manipuri dailies every other single morning. But for how long...?

Till the point, it becomes a land of widows?... How long?

It's not a blame game I am trying to play here. All I want to say here is, as a steward and a guardian of the people, a government needs to have a moral responsibility over its people: to protect and safeguard the people of Manipur.

And I don't see that in action now.

Or in fact, I haven't seen that in action for a long time now.

But it's never too late to act. Now is the time to act.

If you delay a moment, you're going to lose a million chance of a lifetime, only to be filled with regret a million times in the future. Now is the time to act.

Let's not make Manipur the 'Sick Man of the Northeast'. I don't know about the outcome of the several investigations being carried out by different entities, [including CBI], over this unfortunate triple murder episode.

But let's hope for the best and pray that true justice be delivered to those souls and the families that lost them.

Now, Manipur has lost one precious gem... to some mindless gang of hoodlums. A star that was beginning to shine over the dark black sky will no longer be seen anymore, because it was abruptly stopped and extinguished from shining in this part.

Maybe a star was not supposed to shine and give light over this dark black sky!

May his soul rest in peace in the heavenly abode. My prayers are with the bereaved families.