Congress asks CM to stop blaming it for crisis
Source: Chronicle News Service
Imphal, January 03 2025:
The Congress in Manipur on Friday slammed Chief Minister N Biren Singh for constantly claiming that the challenges faced by the state are due to the failures of the previous government instead of properly dealing with the law and order situation.
The statement came hours after the chief minister claimed that those who are indulging in politics over his apology to the people on the 20-month-long ethnic conflict are seeking unrest in the state.
The opposition party also asserted that the fencing work at the Indo-Myanmar border began during the tenure of the Congress and not that of the BIP as claimed by the CM.
The state and central governments have been saying that infiltration from Myanmar is one of the key causes of the ethnic violence between Meitei and Kuki communities in the north-eastern state that left over 250 people dead since May last year.
"The government and the chief minister are always making false allegations against the previous Congress government and playing blame games instead of performing its duties.
If he apologised for the violence, he must also take responsibility," Congress Legislature Party leader O Ibobi Singh told reporters.
The CM on Tuesday apologised for the ethnic conflict in the state and appealed to all communities to forget and forgive past mistakes and start afresh.
Speaking on fencing along the Myanmar border, Ibobi Singh said during the 2010-11 financial year, the Centre approved the construction of fencing in 10 km.
"By 2013-14, 4.2 km of fencing works have been completed.
Biren Singh, however, is claiming that border fencing began during his tenure and is taking credits for whatever is completed," the Congress leader said.
Ibobi Singh was the chief minister of Manipur between 2002 and 2017 .
Biren Singh became the CM when the BJP came to power in 2017 .
"They are claiming that illegal immigrants entered Manipur only during the time of the Congress...
However, I am told that according to MH A reports, a large number of illegal immigrants entered (the state) in 2021 after a military coup in Myanmar," Ibobi Singh said.
He also said Biren Singh has been consistently claiming that signing of Suspension of Operations agreement in 2008 as one of the major reasons for the violence.
"However, despite being in power for 10 years, the NDA government has not abrogated the SoO," he said.
The SoO agreement was signed by the Centre, Manipur government and two conglomerates of Kuki militant outfits - Kuki National Organisation and United People's Front.
The pact was signed in 2008 and extended periodically.
"If something wrong is there with the SoO, the BJP government could have taken action...
could have come out of the pact.
Instead of taking appropriate law and order action, they are trying to shift the blame on the earlier government," the Congress leader said.
Rejecting chief minister N Biren Singh's persistent attempts to attribute the present challenges facing Manipur to the previous Congress government, Ibobi termed Biren's apology to the people with a 'Sorry' after nearly two years of violence and killing as quite shameful' .
Briefing the media at Congress Bhawan, Ibobi said the unprecedented violence in the state crossed 19 months and CM Biren continues to blame the previous Congress government for problems besieging the state at present.
"If the present government had rectified the problems created by the past government including law and order, we would surely appreciate the government," Ibobi said, while criticising CM Biren for blaming the previous government for the challenges facing the state at present.
"He (Biren) does so without realising the fact that all the development in the state were taken up during the tenure of the previous Congress government," Ibobi jibed.
Strongly rebuking N Biren's claim of the previous Congress government responsible for causing illegal immigration, O Ibobi said Manipur shares 398km long international boundary with Myanmar.
Barring the little over 9 km fenced border, the remaining vast border area are still un-fenced, Ibobi said and asked if no outsider enter Manipur through this vast area since BJP came to power.
Regarding SoO signed during the time of Congress government, O Ibobi said the primary objective of signing the peace pact was to restore peace and normalcy in the state.
The agreement included provisions to ensure protection of territorial integrity of Manipur and safeguard rights of the people, Ibobi maintained.
MPCC president K Meghachandra, deputy CLP leader K Ranjit, MLA Th Lokeshwar and other state Congress leaders also attended the press conference.
During the press conference, CWC member Gaikhangam said that government is still unable to identify the genesis of the present violence and hence it will be difficult for it to find a solution.
He also asked as to whether any MLA belonging to the Kuki and Meetei communities or the government has taken any step to restore peace or normalcy in the state.
(With inputs from PTI) .
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