Talking of peace and normalcy : Sanctity of the place
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: August 17, 2024 -

Several measures, some of which can be disclosed, others which cannot be disclosed at this point of time, have been taken up to restore peace in the State.

This was Chief Minister N Biren Singh while flagging off a Har Ghar Tiranga campaign one day ahead of the 78th Independence Day celebration of India and for the beleaguered people of India, the line that the Government has taken up some measures to restore normalcy would have sounded good and positive.

The Chief Minister was candid enough in admitting that not all the measures that have been taken up can be spelt out before the public, but one wished that he had spelt out in greater details some of the points which could have been spelt out.

Apart from this, the Chief Minister also felt it necessary to touch on a vital point with the line, ‘No force on earth can destroy the unity of India and Manipur,’ and in one line, N Biren brushed aside the Separate Administration call raised by the ten Kuki-Zo MLAs and which have resonated with the Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum (ITLF), the Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU) and the Kuki Inpi, Manipur.

It however remains to be seen how novel this would seem with the people who have stood by the idea of Manipur as a distinct geo-political reality for this is a line which has been repeated many times.

What however stands out, is the manner in which the lines, ‘Several measures, some of which can be disclosed and some others which cannot be disclosed, have been taken up by the Government to bring peace’ and ‘No force on earth can destroy the unity of India and Manipur’ were spelt out in the same breath, in the same statement and on the same occasion.

As noted earlier, nothing in detail has been spelt out from amongst the points that could be disclosed, but it is nonetheless heartening to note that the Government has put in place some measures to take Manipur on the path of normalcy.

This is where one is tempted to ask whether the measures have been taken up in consultation with New Delhi or whether Manipur has decided to go it alone.

Another question that is of importance to the people would be whether the Government at Imphal has managed to get in touch with any of the dissenting ten Kuki-Zo MLAs or not and whether any efforts have been made to reach out to the CSOs on the other side of the clash divide ?

Or has the Government at Imphal made any arrangements to use the service of the Naga CSOs and its partner MLAs from the NPF to break the ice with the Churachandpur and Kangpokpi based CSOs or not.

These questions are being raised in the backdrop of the fact that nothing of much substance has been forthcoming, in so far as the initiative taken up to initiate the process for normalcy is concerned.

For over 15 months Manipur has been in a state of war with the State buffered into zones, clearly laying down lines which people from either side should not cross.

Other than this, no other steps taken up are visible and in as much as the Chief Minister may say that the Government is working overtime to restore a semblance of peace and normalcy, the fact remains that no Meitei would dare venture beyond Kanglatongbi on National Highway 2 or beyond Torbung towards Churachandpur or cross Pallel towards Moreh.

Likewise no Kuki would be in the position to return to the place they once called home at Imphal or any of the other valley districts.

In short there is nothing to show of normalcy, after Manipur went up in flames in the evening of May 3, 2023.

It is amid this reality that the Chief Minister talked of the Government having taken up efforts to put Manipur on the track of normalcy and this is what makes the pre-Independence Day address all that more significant.

For over 450 days, Manipur has been literally paralysed, with thousands still living like refugees in their own homeland, with none able to move around freely.

Numerous small time business houses have had to fold up or are on the verge of being closed down and the livelihoods of many have been turned upside down.

Time for Imphal and Delhi to grasp the reality.