Pull the rug from the web of lies : Lies that have been sold
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: January 05, 2024 -

A web of lies and deceit.

And it is around these lies and more lies that the slogan of Separate Administration has been raised and again it is from this slogan that the Kangpokpi based Committee on Tribal Unity came out with its war cry Solution First, Peace Later.

It is on these axes of Separate Administration and Solution First, Peace Later that the victim story has been churned out and which has been consumed and narrated with so much dexterity by the media in other parts of the country that the ‘persecuted Christians’ narrative went on to figure on the floor of the European Parliament in the earlier part of the ongoing conflict sometime in 2023.

This is where the understanding of ‘parachute journalism’ has been sought to be woven into the false narrative that has been peddled to the country and the outside world and this is what has been brought forth in the research study conducted under the supervision of an Associate Professor of Jawaharlal Nehru University.

Dismantle the false narrative that has been woven into the story of the ongoing conflict and it is from here that the true story can emerge.

How the story is told is what is important and this is a point which The Sangai Express has been standing by ever since Manipur went up in flames in the evening of May 3.

A point which has been stated, repeated and stressed numerous times in this column for afterall for the truth to emerge, it is imperative that the correct story be told.

Churachandpur was in a tense situation long before the Tribal Solidarity March of the All Tribal Students’ Union, Manipur was staged on May 3 and it was for this reason why this newspaper had raised the question of why the rally was allowed to be staged at all.

Again it would be extremely mischievous and downright an act of lying between one’s teeth if one were to interpret the acts of arson and violence prior to May 3 at Churachandpur as tension or stand off between the Kukis and the Meiteis.

The combative mood of the people of Churachandpur was seen and understood as taking a stand against the policies and programmes of the Government and not against the Meiteis.

This is a point which has been stressed and repeated on more than one occasion and this is being repeated again.

One hopes the research study has noted this and done its bit in pointing out the wrong interpretation given to the situation before the May 3 conflagration and it is on this note that The Sangai Express had repeatedly questioned why houses belonging to the Meiteis were identified, singled out, burnt and levelled to the ground at Torbung and Churachandpur much before Imphal and the valley districts retaliated.

Why weren’t these questions raised in any of the reports filed by the fly by night operators or the ’parachute journalists’ of the media located in other parts of the country ?

For that matter, why weren’t questions raised on why the Tribal Solidarity March ended peacefully in the Naga dominated districts of Senapati, Ukhrul and Tamenglong if the protest was against the demand that the Meiteis be included in the Scheduled Tribe category of the Constitution of India ?

It is for this very reason why The Sangai Express has for long been maintaining that the Tribal Solidarity March rested on something far removed from the ST for Meiteis demand and was just a sham to take along the Nagas.

Pandering to the false narratives and giving more weight to the victim story is what has been happening and the research study should go some way in neutralising such narratives.

The tales of lies and more lies and the deceits can be said to be directly responsible for why the violence has dragged on for so long and the only counter to lies and deceits is the truth and nothing but the truth and this is what the situation warrants.

To come anywhere near the truth, first it is important to admit that as long as grievances were addressed to the Government, the present conflict would not have arisen.

The trouble erupted the moment the misguided folks of Churachandpur decided to pick on innocent Meiteis at Torbung and Churachandpur on May 3.