Once landed in the Raj Bhawan, one’s heart is filled with joy and excitement to see the old trees, a variety of flowers, and the evergreen Bungalow where Pandit Nehru stayed twice in the early 50s and 60s on diplomatic missions to the State.

In the spacious lawn, visitors enjoy the scenery with airy stride. It is a quaint place, with its main path, no more than a pathway or a series of steps, leading down to the main place (Chamber of the Governor), or having an old fashioned attractiveness with another gate inside. One likes to putter around the garden though it hardly knows a dahlia from a daisy.

The picturesque Raj Bhawan, that wasn’t built overnight, is the pride of the people of Manipur, and revisiting it is to get dignified and broadbased. All the paths in the Bhawan are puzzling and impassable before formalities are fulfilled.

Intelligence officers holding radio wireless set in their hands and sentries in civil dresses keep strict watch on the movement and behaviour of visitors, be it VIPs or ordinary men, and some of them may nervously act awkwardly there.

In such a situation, the mission of the day will be doomed. There is every chance of being scolded by the sentries who are alert round the clock to ensure strict observance of protocol, and even a mild thrashing is possible.

Who knows? Trespassers in the lawn may be prosecuted when there is no prior notice given to visitors to keep out of a particular area inside the Raj Bhawan. Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown is to go through the ordeal called strict observance of protocol.

After a thorough frisking in the visitor’s waiting room, visitors or delegates are led to His Excellency’s cramped chamber with a brief halt at a point overlooking the chamber of the Aide-De-Camp.

Then, what is a Protocol? It remains an abstract thing to compel the state authority to set up a number of charm schools. It is a system of fixed rules and formal behaviours used at official meetings, usually between Governments. For instance, the first Geneva Protocol which is set out in a legally binding rules forming part of the treaty between countries.

Now, it has become a set of rules for the visitors at the Raj Bhawan to behave in an accepted way when large sections of the people are unaware of such rules, the prosaic side of life.

It is always clumsy to walk on the carpet spread on the floor of the room unless one’s shoes are shining dark or dark red. One literally rolls about on the floor with laughter and a bit of grudge to encounter a strange situation. It is also unbecoming to speak up to the Governor in uncombed hair and unironed shirts.

A hill village chief was sacked from meeting him when he was told to remove a furry comforter that was wrapped around his neck. On an earlier occasion in 1990, another chief wrapped himself in a black tribal shawl at the beginning of summer, putting on a pair of unpolished leather boots and wearing a thick turban on his head to the embarrassment of the Governor.

Raj Bhawan’s men from orderlies to officers on duty feel annoyed at seeing roughly clad visitors. No leader of a party or organization can be meticulous, and pose as a chameleon while presenting views or grievances to be heard.

Any attempt to put up a forceful argument will provoke the Governor to an outburst, such a forceful personality himself. Even in educated speech, it is very easy to slip unwittingly into contradictions while talking to the dignitary.

He is the symbolic head of the State, and he can’t make any commitment to major agenda for development of a hill village. However, one is in fulsome praise of a Governor who hears and speaks. His benevolence in words, though not materially is an outstanding feature of his character.

At the sight of a tall and handsome Aide-De-Camp rushing in, someone may become terrified. (Then though wilt scare me in my dreams, and terrify me through visions). So, it may be a flavour of humour in some contexts contrary to moral standards of man, but in others, it has an added touch of dignity.

The Raj Bhawan has no dearth of guards to censure unruly conducts of visitors, and there are engineers, physicians, agriculture and fishery officers and IAS officers in it. In short, it is a miniature world reminding us of the pinky Rashtrapati Bhawan, which also shan’t be a lesser palace than the American White House in Washington D.C.

Then, the Banquet Hall! Every time the Banquet Hall! What does it look like? It remains hidden somewhere in the Raj Bhawan, and is inaccessible to common men. God willing! It can be visited one day with full honours and a lot of cheers.

As the model code of election to the 9th Assembly was enforced, the idea of seeing the Chief Minister was dropped. Instead, the delegation consisting of five members led by Shiekson Tumtin, president of the Koren Youth Organisation called on the Governor of Manipur S.S. Sidhu on the 10th Jan,’07 at the Raj Bhawan in connection with the 41st Koren Youth Conference to be held on the 24th Jan 07 at Longa Koireng.

The main purpose of the visit was to invite him to be with them in their conference. The Governor said there were 33 recognized STs in Manipur, and he wouldn’t be able to attend the conference of every tribe. Also, the model code of election was enforced making it impracticable for him to attend their conference.

At that moment, one felt that it had run the whole gamut of human emotions from elation to despair, feeling cold in the chamber. As speculated, fortune failed to smile upon the brave. The delegates countered saying the former Governor, late Chintamani Panigrahi attended their conference in 1990, even though no commitment was made. For which, the Koireng people has a profound memory of that great personality.

The existing Governor was sympathetic, and he heard them patiently reading half of the note submitted to him in which the delegates pointed out India remains a strong democracy upholding its values and ideals, and Manipur is a constituent unit of it.

Nobody should be discarded because of his talent, worth or unworth, integrity and such others and the less-gifted community should be given fuller consideration, apart from respecting it as an entity and providing opportunities to bring out its best. The great purpose of democracy is the recognition of the existence of every living human being. It doesn’t insist upon being equal in merit or strength.

What democracy upholds is that no community, backward or weaker be treated the worse because the community is less endowed with capacity than others, or for that matter, with wealth, fortune and population whatever. On the contrary, the less-fortunate minority tribe like the Koireng be treated as the equal of all others in civil and human rights.

Note: This article was written before the 9th Assembly Election