PREPAK (Pro) vows to intensify movement-II
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, October 09 2012:
Contd from previous issue .
Commenting on Chief Minister O Ibobi's assurance to improve power situation in the State, the Chairman pointed out that the Congress manifesto released by Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh before the last Manipur Legislative Assembly elections promised a plethora of development programmes including formulation of a specific economic policy for Manipur, development of infrastructure, establishment of highway protection force, equitable development in hills and valley, expansion of border trade etc.
But so far the Indian Prime Minister never enquired about the promises he made to the people of Manipur.
In the same manner, similar promises were made by Congress through their election manifesto released before 2007 elections by its leader Oscar Fernandes.
Ten years hence, it is questionable which and which infrastructure have been developed, and where was the money reportedly sanctioned for these projects were utilised.
It went on to question if the Congress Government led by Ibobi meant frequent bandhs, blockades and general strikes in both the hills and valley when it claimed about bringing peace and stability.
Or did it mean concentrating wealth on a few privileged section and arming them with both licensed and unlicensed guns when it said progress.
Whereas the Congress Government was unable to make any significant improvement in the power sector during the last 10 years, it is making a lame excuse on non-payment of bills by consumers, it asserted.
Quoting a reported statement of Governor Gurbachan Jagat that huge projects sanctioned by New Delhi have not benefited the people as all the money have been swindled by local agents, the outfit remarked that O Ibobi should have understood the meaning of the statement.
Again the Governor stated that good governance did not depend on presence of conflict situation or not.
On the other hand, O Ibobi has been repeatedly blaming the conflict situation for their failure to bring any significant development in Manipur.
Here, it is essential for the Governor and the Chief Minister to come to an understanding.
Further the Governor stated, "After the successive expiry of the leaders of Indian freedom struggle, and the since the younger generation came to political power, no official could be done without (bribe) money".
The underlying meaning of the Governor's statement was quite obvious and it certainly must be so to Ibobi, MLAs/Ministers and their moneyed gangs.
The apprehension about a possible situation where the whole Manipuri society may disappear after a gap of two/three generations on account of exodus of students and their settlement outside Manipur was also laid down in clear terms.
But it is doubtful if Ibobi could grasp the implications of this statement, the outfit stated.
Commenting on the reported cases of fake encounter, the outfit alleged that it was the Indian Army who made a gang of surrenderees abduct six British, German, American and Norwegian tourists in the name of Al-Faran terrorist group in 1995.The hostage crisis was exposed in 'The Meadow' published by British journalists Adrian Levy and Cathy Scott-Clark as an attempt of the then Congress Government led by Naramsimha to hoodwink the international community and exert pressure on Pakistan.
When one fellow lady tourist filed a report about the abduction at a camp of Rashtriya Rifles, the lady was raped by a Major of the Rashtriya Rifles (RR).
The book also mentioned about negotiations between RR and surrenderee gang to pay Rs 10,000 to Rs 20,000 for any rebel killed under a 'Cash-For-Corpses Incentive Scheme' .
Recently, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) asserted that out of 19 cases of encounter reported from Guntur and Kurnoor districts of Andhra Pradesh before 2002, 16 were fake encounters.
Out of 2560 police encounter cases between October 1995 and March 2011, 1224 cases were fake encounters, as per reports available with the NHRC which means one in every two encounters is fake.
Top leaders of the Indian military who were once instrumental in staging fake encounters in Kashmir and Punjab are now posted in Manipur as bureaucrats and 'political agents' and it is under their instruction that innocent civilians are being killed on daily basis, wedges are being driven between different communities, gangs are being set up with the objective of projecting revolutionaries in wrong light and secret killings are being perpetrated.
As per records, Manipur is only next to UP in terms of staging fake encounters.
Pointing out that the Supreme Court recently observed that security forces were staging fake encounters in Manipur, the outfit questioned as to why should not the Chief Minister be punished for the fake encounters perpetrated under his rule.
Results of the 2012 election should be construed as people's mandate given to O Ibobi.
It is questionable how far the citizens can cast their votes according to their own judgements when there is no respect for human rights in the society, when killings and crimes are reported every day and when the soceity is marred by social crimes and criminal gangs are operating everywhere.
It would be too far-fetched to expect the real meaning of democracy in a place where there is neither freedom nor respect for human rights.
On the other hand, the Indian elections could never guarantee protection of people's freedom.
The outfit furtther alleged that both software and hardware of the electronic voting machines were manipulated besides rampant use of the State security forces in the same election.
Though the Government of India may collapse based on availability or scarcity of onions or construction or non-construction of Ram mandir, it would never collapse on corruption issues, however big they may be.
People of Manipur need not look up to New Delhi for their problems and issues.
"New Delhi is not the real centre of our politics.
The real centre of the land's politics should be Kangla and the surrounding nine hill ranges.
Confiding that they are ready to amend all their mistakes and drawbacks, the outfit sought public support in their renewed revolutionary movement.