Source: Hueiyen News Service / NNN
Imphal, June 25 2009:
The Manipur Tribal Council (MTC) has informed that the proposed bandh called by the Ex-MDCs' Welfare Union in the hill districts of Manipur on June 26 has been called off as per an understanding reached between the MTC and the Ex-MDCs' Welfare Union.
Speaking to Hueiyen Lanpao over the telephone from Churachandpur tonight, a spokesman of the MTC, Thangkholun Haokip said that the proposed hill districts bandh on June 26 has been called off on the request of the MTC in view of the two-day seminar organised by the Council at Synod Hall, Churachandpur beginning from June 26 .
"We have requested the Ex-MDCs' Welfare Union to suspend the bandh in view of the two-day seminar relating to Prevention of Atrocities Act, 1989, which is organised by the MTC in collaboration with the Tribal Research Institute," H Paozalal, Secretary of MTC told Hueiyen Lanpao over the phone from Churachandpur.
"And we have been going on publicity campaign that the bandh has been suspended in toto as (apparently) positive response from the Union was received during a communication made between the two organisations this morning," Paozalal said.
"We were assured that the proposed bandh would be called off," he added.
However, efforts to contact the Ex-MDCs' Welfare Union has failed.
On the other hand, official sources in Imphal said on Thursday that all the police stations across the hill districts of Manipur have been kept on high alert to counter any untoward incident during the proposed 24-hour bandh called by the Ex-members of District Council.
Ex-members of District Council is calling general strike/bandh across the five hill districts of Senapati, Ukhrul, Chandel, Churachandpur and Tamenglong which would commence from 5 am of tomorrow (June 26) till 5 am of Saturday (June 27) .
An official of the state police department here said that on receiving the information that the ex-MDC body is imposing the 24-hour general strike, all the police stations in the entire hill areas importantly police stations covering the national way portions have been asked to remain on high alert to prevent any untoward incident.
The body is demanding the holding of the early elections to the autonomous district councils which have been held up for more than 20 years.
The government's failure to fix schedules for the holding of elections even though nine months have passed since the state Assembly passed the Manipur District Council Amendment Bill 2008, has irked the ex-MDCs.
This prolonged delay in holding the elections amounts to violation of their rights under the Constitution of India which provides for development through decentralization of powers with elected representatives at the district level, the ex-MDCs pointed out.