Govt accused of debarring Cong team to meet victims
Source: Chronicle News Service

Kangpokpi, May 19 2023: Accusing the BJP-led government of debarring the visit of Congress Fact Find-ing Team, the District Congress Committee Sadar Hills (DCCSH) vehemently condemned al-leged attempt to cover up the communal violence in the state.

Mention may be made here that Congress president Mal-likarjun Kharge had constitut-ed a three-member fact find-ing team to ascertain causes of widespread violence in Mani-pur and evaluate its extent.

The three-member team in-cluded AICC general secretary MP Mukul Wasnik, former MP Ajoy Kumar and MLA Sudip Roy Barman.

Briefing media persons at Kangpokpi on Friday, Manipur Pradesh Congress Commit-tee (MPCC) vice president Dr Lamtinthang Haokip said that the BJP government prevent-ing the visit of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) team to meet internally dis-placed people, both in the hills and valley on May 18, is blatant disregard for transparency, accountability and the welfare of the citizens of Manipur.

Strongly condemning the alleged insensitivity" on the part of the state government, Dr Haokip said that the pur-pose of a fact-finding team is to independently assess and in-vestigate situations demanding urgent attention, while adding that their presence ensures an impartial evaluation of the situation, which is crucial in promoting justice and ensuring the protection of human rights.

"Preventing their visit un-dermines the principles of de-mocracy, public trust, and raises serious concerns about the ac-tions and intentions of the state government," he maintained.

The MPCC VP also said that the role of a fact-finding team is even more critical and necessary in times of crisis like this.

The people affected by this violence and evolving circumstances have the right to have their voices heard, and it is the duty of the government to facili-tate a fair and transparent assessment of the ground situation, he contended.

Dr Lamtinthang then said that by preventing the Cen-tral Fact-Finding Team from conducting their investiga-tion, the state government has hindered justice and obstructed the path to truth.

He continued that the decision to debar the Cen-tral Fact-Finding Team has sent a distressing message to the citizens of Manipur and the nation as a whole, adding that it also created an environment of suspi-cion, secrecy, and a lack of accountability.

"The state government must accept that transpar-ency and accountability are the cornerstones of a func-tioning democracy and any attempts to suppress or hin-der them will only further erode people's confidence," he said.

"We call upon the state government to reconsider its decision and immediately allow the Central Fact-Find-ing Team access to all relief camps in the hills and val-ley," Dr Lamtinthang urged, stating that it is imperative that any central team from different political parties be granted support, resources, and cooperation to carry out their duties effectively.

"The truth and justice demanded by the affected citizens cannot be corn-promised or suppressed for political expediency or any other reasons," he main-tained.

Meanwhile, DCCSH, which organised the media briefing, urged the central government and relevant national and international organisations to take cogni-zance of this alarming situa-tion and intervene to ensure that the rights of the citizens of Manipur are protected as per the law of the land.

It stated that the denial of access to Fact-Finding Team of any political party is gross violation of funda-mental human rights and must not be tolerated.

In this critical juncture, Con-gress stands in solidarity with the affected individuals and communities in their pursuit of justice, truth, and accountability, it added.

It further stated that Congress will continue to advocate for transparency, impartial investigations, and the protection of human rights.

It then stated that the actions of the state gov-ernment are unacceptable, and therefore, demanded immediate rectification to uphold the principles of jus-tice and democracy.

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