Centre's Decisive action and Leadership Change in Manipur – Required
- September 02nd, 2024 :World Meetei Council -

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To
The Hon'ble Shri Narendra Modi
The Prime Minister of India

Subject: Centre's Decisive action and Leadership Change in Manipur – Required

Hon'ble Sir,

Greetings from the World Meetei Council!

With due respect, I have the honour to submit that the World Meetei Council held an in-depth discussion yesterday evening regarding the ongoing violence in Manipur. The violence, which began on May 3, 2023, has severely disrupted the lives of the indigenous people, particularly the Meetei community and the immigrant community as well, due to attacks by the illegal migrant Chin-Kukis.

Sir, while you addressed the situation in the Parliament during the last Monsoon Session in the Rajya Sabha, we feel that the root causes and solutions to control the violence were not fully addressed. The prolonged unrest has strained the social fabric of Manipur, endangering the very existence of the state.

The violence is driven by heavily armed Chin-Kuki groups who are reportedly in agreement with the Government of India under the Suspension of Operations (SoO) arrangement. Despite the presence of approximately 60,000 Indian Army and Assam Rifles personnel in Manipur, their effectiveness is curtailed by this agreement, which prevents them from taking action against these armed groups of a total of 2200 cadres as admitted by the Spokesman of the SoO groups in a recent TV interview.

Historically, Manipur has faced challenges since it became a part of India in 1949 and later attained statehood in 1972. While past unrest was often political, the current violence seems aimed at destabilizing the state itself. We firmly believe that if the Government of India acts decisively, this violence can be stopped immediately.

Additionally, it is concerning that the state government, led by Hon'ble Shri Biren Singh, has not been effective in creating a conducive atmosphere over the past sixteen months. Recent incidents, e.g. yesterday's killing of two people and injuring ten and the burning of a village by the Chin-Kuki near the National Sports University, the foundation stone of which was laid by you, illustrate the abject failure of Biren Singh government to foster conducive atmosphere.

The World Meetei Council strongly believes that replacing Shri Biren Singh with another leader could improve the situation and foster a more conducive environment for peace. Therefore, in the interest of the people of Manipur who have endured so much suffering, we request that another leader be considered to lead the state and bring about much-needed change.

With the highest regards,

Heigrujam Nabashyam
Chairman
World Meetei Council