Peaceful session in Assembly as tension brews outside
- The People's Chronicle Editorial :: July 28, 2022 -

UNLIKE in the past, especially during the Congress party’s rule, when almost every assembly session used to be overshadowed by street protests over varied issues, the last few sessions had been held under a comparatively harmonious atmosphere. The on-going session in particular has been marked by healthy discussions without any furious debates among the legislators.

With all but five Congress MLAs backing the BJP-led government either as coalition partners or lending unconditional support, it is but natural that there wouldn’t be any intense debates.

Such calmness inside the assembly hall, however, doesn’t mean that outside of the assembly everybody is satisfied with the government’s performance chart if one takes note of the fact that some influential civil society organisations had been holding grudges against the establishment for undermining the demands or proposals ranging from enactment of the ADC Bill 2020 to conduct of National Register of Citizens, proper demarcation of the Indo-Myanmar border in Manipur sector and inclusion of the Meetei community in the Scheduled Tribe list of the country, to name a few unsolved issues.

For instance, similar to civil societies namely COCOMI and United Naga Council keeping aside their ideological differences and socio-political agenda in pursuance of the demand for identifying infiltrators to uphold interest and aspiration of the indigenes, student bodies such as AMSU, AIMS, DESAM, KSA, MSF and SUK are also pitching for updating National Register of Citizens (NRC) and establishment of State Population Commission, so as to enable the establishment to effectively prevent imminent outnumbering of the indigenous communities by outsiders.

In what could be construed as validation of demand of these organisations for update on NRC and setting up the population commission, Union minister of state for external affairs Dr RK Ranjan confided some days back that the government is mulling of issuing identity cards to people settling along the Indo-Myanmar border belt with special priority in Chandel district, which shares porous border with Myanmar.

Had there been no issue of unauthorised entry of Myanmarese nationals then the Union MoS wouldn’t have stressed the need for constant screening to prevent entry of people from across the border.

Thus, there is substance in the demand by the concerned organisations that the government initiate discussion and adopt a unanimous resolution with regard to updating the NRC and setting up of the State Population Commission in the on-going session of the Assembly.

Under no circumstance should the government authorities undermine the threat to the indigenous population of Manipur as is evident from unprecedented increase in the number of population in certain pockets.

Another issue placed for deliberation by the legislators is the demand of tribal student bodies spearheaded by All Tribal Students' Union, Manipur (ATSUM) that the HAC-recommended ‘The Manipur (Hill Areas) Autonomous District Council Bill 2021’ be tabled, discussed and passed in the Manipur Legislative Assembly.

With its repeated insistence going unheeded, it is understandable that the tribal student bodies are getting utterly frustrated and would want a definite answer from the government whether its demand would be considered or not.

If the on-going session doesn’t take a call, then the possibility of the tribal student bodies resorting to agitations cannot be ruled out as had been the norm whenever any issue or demand placed before the government authorities do not evoke positive response.

The only reason why these organisations are putting on hold plans of agitation could be due to hoping and trusting the government to do the needful on the basis of merit of the demands.

As such, if the government thinks that the demands are worthy for consideration then prompt measures should be initiated rather than waiting for the situation to turn volatile.