Conflict gets deadlier as political parties spar
- The People's Chronicle Editorial :: July 11, 2023 -

AMID charges and counter-charges flying thick and fast among the ruling BJP and the opposition parties, especially the Con-gress, over the ethnic violence which continues unabated for over two months, the frontline has been witnessing not only unrestrained firing from conventional battle firearms but also use of the deadlier mortar shells of varied shapes and sizes as well as modern surveillance technology.

While use of explosives to blast a culvert in Kwakta village area triggered widespread condemnation and many likened it to acts of terrorism, recent clashes in the peripheral villages has seen indiscriminate use of mortar shelling on Meetei villages.

From state level functionaries to national figures of different political parties, there has been war of words as the violence rages in Manipur.

With the parliament elections due next year, it seems the volatile situation in the state is drawing the attention of regional and national political or-ganisations with the leaders eyeing to impress the people by holding one another responsible for the turmoil and sympathising with suffering of the public.

Hours after state leaders of the BJP and Congress parties levelled allegations against one another with the obvious intention to win over the people's heart rather than keeping aside their difference to bring an end to the chaos, in the latest game of one-upmanship Union minister of state RK Ranjan held the Congress responsible for the prevailing unprecedented unrest in Manipur whereas Congress leader Sachin Pilot alleged that the BJP government allowed the situation to fester besides asking why Prime Minister Narendra Modi was not holding a 'genuine' all-party meeting on the Manipur situation.

Like all opposition leaders, Sachin Pilot hit out at chief minister N Biren, saying that he had lost the moral and political right to govern the state.

On the other-hand, regardless of RK Ranjan contending that the blunders committed by Congress, which had been in power in the state for three consecutive terms till 2017, is one of the factors for outbreak of the current ethnic violence, it is hard to digest such a claim especially as chief minister N Biren had admitted security lapses and intelligence failure and he (Ranjan) himself had expressed strong dissent over collapse of law and order in the state after his private residence was set on fire by a mob in mid-June after a failed attempt in May.

The central minister's claim also contradicts Bp:. ministers, MLAs and party functionaries' assertion that the anti-drug campaign launched by the incumbent government and eviction of encroachers from re-served and protected forests outraged the affected community and hence resorted to violence.

As the immediate concern of the public is to remain safe from the deadly conflict it could be safely stated that such a political slugfest would be of least interest to the public.

The agitated public's utter disregard for the political class had also came to the fore when mobs aired their angst or stormed official or private residences and properties of ministers Nemcha Kipgen, Konthoujam Govindas, Yumnam Khemchand and L Susindro, besides MLAs Kh Raghumani and K Ranjit Singh among others.

As such, it is desired that the political class keep aside their differences and endeavour to make the central leaders acknowledge seriousness of the situation and do the needful for ending the violence, without which the public will naturally perceive politicians as scoundrels.