COTU warns against bid to declare peace
Source: Chronicle News Service
Kangpokpi:, May 20 2023:
There is no sign of peace or normalcy in Kang-pokpi district after a corn-motion broke out again on Saturday along the National Highway-2 at Saparmeina, around 15 km away from Kangpokpi district head-quarters, when a district administration team tried to visit villages to take stock of situation.
The incident reportedly occurred around 4 pm when Kangpokpi SP Manoj Prabha-kar and DC Mukesh Hiralal Chaudhari along with secu-rity personnel proposed to visit villages in the district.
Hundreds of locals gath-ered within minutes along the NH-2 at Saparmeina and blocked the highway and even restricted the officials from returning to Kang-pokpi after meeting with the Committee on Tribals Unity (COTU), Sadar Hills at Gamnom Saparmeina po-lice station.
However, COTU leaders pacified the peeved locals and let the officials go.
Meanwhile, an attempt to bring few loaded trucks to Imphal around 5:30 pm almost turned ugly but was averted due to timely inter-vention by Assam Rifles and Kangpokpi district police.
Later in the evening, COTU spokesperson K Sitlhou told North East Live that attempt to bulldoze the public senti-ment and "forcefully declare normalcy or peace" in the district is being made by the government and its machin-ery in Kangpokpi district when in fact the situation has never been normalised.
He continued that the proposal to visit villages by the district administration, district police, and security forces during this critical situation when all are in fear and apprehensive mood is construed by the public as part of the government's plan to forcefully declare normalcy and peace in the district.
Unless the Government restores long-lasting peace and normalcy by coming up with policies and plans after winning the people's trust, such attempts to create and fabricate peace and normalcy" will never serve its purpose rather it will trigger more violence, he cautioned, asking the gov-ernment "never to attempt any plan for forceful peace" in the district.
Meanwhile, the COTU secretary said that shops in Kangpokpi town were asked to open for the internally displaced persons evacu-ated to the district, to buy their essential needs and this should not be taken as if nor-malcy is back in the district.
Movement of commer-cial vehicles are still blocked along the highway, and no educational institutions could be open yet, thus showing the grim and tense situation in the district, he added.