All party team studies border issue ; Report to be highlighted to Delhi
Source: The Sangai Express

Moreh, October 22 2013: As per the decision taken during an all political party meeting held on October 10 with Chief Minister O Ibobi in the chair, a team drawn from different political parties and headed by Deputy Chief Minister Gaikhangam today visited the Manipur-Myanmar border at Moreh and the adjoining areas to take stock of the situation which the border fencing has kicked up.

In line with the assurance given by the Chief Minister earlier, the report of today's visit to the border will be highlighted to New Delhi by another political delegation to be led by the Chief Minister, to resolve the border issue with Myanmar.

Gaikhangam leading the team

Representatives of 15 political parties including the Congress, BJP, CPI, and Trinamool Congress which formed the team inspected the spot where the Assam Rifles is constructing a 10 km long fence along the border area at Moreh.

Ibobi Singh had convened the all party meeting on October 10 after Opposition parties and civil society organisations raised a hue and cry on the ground that the border fencing had intruded into the territory of Manipur.

Following the report that Myanmarese army had intruded into Hollenphai village located about 2 kms from Moreh town, on the side of Manipur, to set up a base camp, a demand was also raised to re-survey the 389 kms long Manipur-Myanmar border.

The all political party team, after assessing the border situation with district level officials, will submit a report to the State Government, Gaikhangam told reporters here after inspecting the border.

"All the parties will sit down together at the State Assembly Secretariat and prepare a joint memorandum to urge the Centre to settle the border issue," Gaikhangam said.

The Deputy Chief Minister also said that the delegation would urge Delhi to look into border maps shown by Google.

There is strong suspicion that the Manipur-Myanmar border shown in Google is factually incorrect.

The political delegation visited Hollenphai village, Muslim Basti and Govajang village and interacted with villagers.

While in Hollenphai an army officer of Myanmar walked up to the political delegation and wanted to know the purpose of the visit.

The political delegation explained that it was a "friendly visit." Interestingly, the army officer asked the team, particularly media persons not to take photographs of the border areas.

The decision of the State Government, despite an earlier intimation from the Ministry of External Affairs not to depute any official delegates to study the border fencing has come amid the growing allegations that the Ibobi Singh Government is indifferent to the border issue, wherein Manipur stands to lose chunks of her territory to Myanmar due to the border fencing.

Opposition parties, particularly the BJP has been taking pot shots at the Congress Government in Manipur and the Congress led UPA Government at Delhi of remaining indifferent to the issue, especially with the Lok Sabha election scheduled sometime next year.