Titular king's plea to safeguard territory says it all
- The People's Chronicle Editorial :: December 16, 2022 -

While only time will tell whether or not the Union government notices unsolved boundary issue in Manipur sector of the Indo-Myanmar border and does the needful to settle the same, first-time parliamentarian Leishemba Sanajaoba has been demonstrating that he wouldn't sit idle in the Upper House like some of his predecessors whose performance and participation in parliamentary debates or proposals placed in Manipur's interests were not audible in any sense.

Sanajaoba seems to be keen to initiate debate on issues of importance to Manipur whenever there is an opportunity as is evident from his proposal for granting recognition to Manipuri as one of the classical languages of India, highlighting the state's potential in the tourism sector and the latest statement on the Indo-Myanmar boundary issue.

Keeping aside the history of Manipur's sovereign existence before its merger into India, it needs no reminding that indecision on the part of the Union government, the state and the country might lead to losing more territories of Manipur to Myanmar apart from the loss of the fertile Kabaw Valley.

Past incidents such as Myanmarese military personnel intruding into border villages located on the Manipur territory, harassing the villagers and causing damages to sawmills are glaring examples that the military-ruled neighbouring country could turn hostile as and when it deems necessary.

Moreover, the military regime arbitrarily suspending border trade activities at the slightest instance of uneasy situation in the border areas implies that it does not believe in taking into confidence their Indian counterparts even if the issues are of bilateral interest and merits consultations through the mandated channel.

It's disheartening that at a time when national leaders are asserting that the government wouldn't cede even an inch of India's territory to adversaries, a parliamentarian, that too a bloodline of the royal family, has to draw the attention of New Delhi that Manipur has already lost large tracts of land to Myanmar and profusely plea to the central leaders to take up the border issue at the diplomatic level for settling it once and for all.

As such, Leishemba Sanajaoba's remark in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday that India is losing territory along the Manipur-Myanmar border due to faulty border pillars must be accorded importance by New Delhi and explore the means for taking up the border issue with the neighbouring country.

Raising the issue under 'Special Mentions' in the Upper House, Sanajaoba recalled that a few months back, officials from Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) came to Manipur to look into the matter pertaining to reported irregularities about border pillars on Indo-Myanmar border.

He also conveyed that chief minister N Biren has made a request to Union home minister Amit Shah to re-examine the contentious boundary issue.

Though it is possible that the Indian authorities might be in the process of resolving the border disputes, the same exercise not placed in the public domain gives every reason to suspect that New Delhi is dragging its feet in addressing one of the most sensitive issues of Manipur.

The fact that the boundary fencing work along Indo-Myanmar border has been stopped by local people after the border pillars were found shifted or re-installed deep into Manipur's territory sum up the sentiment of the general population.

Moreover, apart from placing on record in the Rajya Sabha that Manipur's traditional boundary is not secured, Sanajaoba, who is also Manipur's titular king, should vigorously pursue the issue till the Centre accords importance in resolving the boundary dispute before a third party exploits the situation.

With Chinese companies investing heavily in extracting minerals and in infrastructure development projects in Myanmar, it would be great risk to leave the borders unguarded for possibility of the Chinese government resorting to aggressive tactics in Manipur sector too to exhibit its economic and military prowess cannot be ruled out.