Testing the HM in Mr Gaikhangam : Watching not merely looking
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: November 15, 2012 -
Home Minister Gaikhangam, who is incidentally the Deputy Chief Minister, seems intent on changing the face of the Home Department, read the State Police force.
Accountability, responsibility and a more humane face for the Police Department is the message that he has sought to convey from the moment he assumed charge of the Home portfolio.
Not an easy task certainly and perhaps the first real test lies in how the Home Department responds to the Public Interest Litigation filed by the Extra-Judicial Execution Victims' Families Association, Manipur (EEVFAM) before the Supreme Court.
November 23, 2012 is the important date in this case. Over 1500 cases of extra-judicial killings is the figure given by the EEVFAM and the plea is for the constitution of an independent body, a Special Investigation Team to probe the cases.
The case is yet to be heard, the last word is yet to be said, but the real Home Minister in Mr Gaikhangam will emerge to a large extent in the manner in which the State Government files its report before the Supreme Court. Lest it is forgotten, the reply from the State Government will come riding on the “Do it quickly. People are dying out there. File your report by November 19” rap from the Supreme Court.
That the date has been extended to November 23 is another matter, but it is important that the Supreme Court has taken note of the fact that people are indeed dying here.
And of course no Court will ask for an explanation on deaths which are deemed natural deaths. It will be interesting to see how the quoted statements of the Supreme Court play on the conscience of Mr Gaikhangam.
A one man show it cannot be. More so when it comes to an institution which has been literally given the license to kill, maim and throw their weight around for decades.
A burden, but a responsibility it is for Gaikhangam to live up to his promises delivered to the people.
How he manages to take the institution of the State Police along with his insights and understanding will be an indication of the things to come.
The weight of expectations from the public will surely be burdensome, but this is what separates the leader from the common man and it remains to be seen whether Gaikhangam can live up to the hopes and aspirations that are expected from a leader.
It is not merely official designations that make a man a leader, but the manner in which how one put things in order and instil confidence in the people.
The ability to see and understand the sorrows and tears of the women and children who have been widowed and orphaned is an imperative in the PIL filed by the EEVFAM.
Suspension of police officials here and there is not the answer, though these are no doubt important. The public is watching, and not merely looking.
A realisation of this point will go a long way in underlining how the State Government responds to the directives from the Supreme Court.
The count down may as well start now for the man from Nungba Assembly Constituency.
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