Missive to Modi exposes longing for CM's chair
- The People's Chronicle Editorial :: October 19, 2024 -

THE joint letter of Manipur BJP legislators addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding removal of chief minister N Biren could be vindication of the civil society organisations' contention that lack of harmony among members of the ruling party and its allies is one of the factors for the crisis in the state eluding solution, regardless of central leaders making efforts to keep the unrest Situation under control.

As reported by Aaj Tak and published in this daily, 19 BJP MLAs of Manipur sent a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding the removal of chief minister N Biren Singh, a demand similar to that raised by Kuki legislators and civil bodies in the initial days of the communal violence, before the latters' objective shifted to separate administration, territorial council or union territory with legislature.

A copy of the letter, which is also in possession of The People's Chronicle, bears the signature of Manipur Legislative Assembly speaker Thokchom Satyabrata Singh, and ministers Thongam Biswajit Singh and Yumnam Khemchand Singh.

The letter, said to be endorsed by majority of the BJP MLAs, was reportedly drafted and finalised on the sidelines of the meeting of Meetei, Kuki and Naga MLAs with officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs in Delhi on October 8.

The letter claimed that the people of Manipur are questioning the BJP government as to why peace has not been restored in the state yet, apart from stating that the public have started to insist that the MLAs should tender resignation if a solution could not be worked out.

Among other points mentioned, the letter conveyed about the MLAs' firm belief that ending the chief ministership of N Biren would help end the unrest in the state and that the Manipur crisis could not be solved by just deploying security forces.

The longer this conflict continues, more the state and the country will suffer, it maintained, appealing to PM Modi to initiate dialogue with all the parties so that peace can be restored in the state.

Amid tension and uncertainty gripping the state, the BJP MLAs campaigning for removal of the chief minister would obviously be discerned by legislators still loyal to N Biren as continuation of the some pressure tactics for effecting change of guard as attempts to dislodge and replace the chief minister were also made few months after the first installation of the BJP-led government in the state.

For instance, the first term of the N Biren government was dominated by intense lobbying for ministerial berths among the alliance partners in the formative years followed by dissent within the BJ P legislators near the halfway mark as expectation of the minister aspirants for cabinet reshuffle did not materialised.

The bickering for plump portfolios even led to resignation of the then chief minister's advisor Th Radheshyam and Manipur Tourism Corporation chairman Karam Shy-am from their respective assignments.

The second term of the BJP-led government was also marked by hectic parleys on who should helm the state's affairs regardless of the pre-election projection by BJP national leaders that N Biren would be the party's chief ministerial face.

Though Biren seems unperturbed, discord within the incumbent government crops up occasionally, as could be comprehended from reports of dissident MLAs camping at the national capital to lobby with central leaderships for his replacement prior to outbreak of the violence.

As there is no doubt that removal of N Biren at this juncture wouldn't be able to impress upon Kuki legislators and civil bodies as well as armed groups to retract from their 'mutable' demand, the missive to the Prime Minister could be yet another pressure tactics engineered by handful of over-ambitious BJP legislators to occupy the top post.