Not even a squeak from our Men :: Spineless is thy name
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: March 31, 2012 -

The Indian Passport

This is a question we could have raised to the very honourable Chief Minister of Manipur to answer, but we will not, for the simple reason that as the leader of the people, Mr Okram Ibobi Singh should have raised the cudgel on behalf of the people of Manipur, who have had to face the indignity of their Nationality being questioned by some cops in Delhi.

Twenty four hours after a good number of people from the North East, particularly from Manipur, were asked to produce their passports, 'when we said we were from Manipur,' the man at the helm for the third consecutive term has deemed it better to keep his mouth shut and seriously this has not come as a surprise to us.

Speculations may not be understood only through the prism of shooting in the dark and in fact it may at times help in conveying a message with more bite or more effectively and this is where we cannot help but speculate a certain scenario.

What would a Jayalalithaa or a Karunanidhi have done if Tamils were asked to produce their pass port on the roads of Delhi, after they had identified themselves as natives of Tamil Nadu when the arms of the LTTE spread far and wide then ?

We are more than certain they would not have remained silent and may have even exerted pressure on the Prime Minister's Office to come out with an explanation, if not an apology.

Remember how India responded when Sikhs were targeted on mistaken identity after the terror attack that brought down the twin towers of the World Trade Centre in the USA in 2001 and changed the profile of the international terrorists ?

Now Manipuris and people from the North East region are being hauled up, detained and subjected to such insulting interrogations just because of their physical appearance and what does the State Government do ?

Keep silent, or rather retreat into their cell with tails between their legs. In as much as the conduct of Delhi police was abhorrent and downright insulting, the mute stand taken by the State Government amounts to endorsing this.

The young Agatha Sangma, representing Tura Parliamentary Constituency from Meghalaya and a Union Minister in the UPA Government has spoken out her mind and asked the Delhi police to respect the sensitivities of the people of the North East.

This is perfectly in line with what one expects from our representatives but what about the very honourable MPs from Manipur ?

Here is a young lady who has wasted no time in coming out to speak for the people and region she represents and what do our Men, yes two Males, do ? Not even a squeak, forget about a growl.

Spineless is the word that comes to mind to describe these so called political leaders from Manipur.

If Mr Okram Ibobi Singh and the two MPs from Manipur have even a teeny weeny bit of fire in their belly they should have taken up the matter with the Centre, lodged a strong complaint and come out with 'guns blazing', the moment it came out in the media.

It is not only a question of some over zealous cops over stepping their line and subjecting citizens of the land to a series of process which directly infringe on their personal spaces, but indicates a mindset that refuses to break free from the 'Chinky' syndrome.

This is not only a question of picking up those with different physical appearances but carries deep political implications and this is what the State Government should have taken up with conviction.

Any leader worth his salt would have taken up the matter with the Centre and made it an issue or is it a case of giving a damn to the sensibilities of the common people ?

Come to think about it, this question may border on the insane or may even sound ludicrous for we are talking about a Government which did nothing when the people reeled under the more than 100 days of highway blockade just last year.