Pressure to quit unjustified : Dy CM
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, September 09 2015 : Deputy Chief Minister Gaikhangam has asserted that no MLA would quit just because he or she has been asked to do so by anyone.

The Deputy Chief Minister gave this comment in response to queries from media persons in the face of the demand raised by different tribal organisations that the tribal MLAs should resign from the Assembly after three Bills were passed on August 31 .

The three Bills were passed after intense agitation that the State Government should either implement the Inner Line Permit System or an Act to protect the indigenous people of the land from the large scale influx of non-local people to the State.

The tribal organisations on the other hand have contended that the three Bills run against the interest of the hill people.

Interacting with media persons after the launch function of a news paper at Hafiz Hatta, Imphal East today, Gaikhangam said that the MLAs were elected after receiving a mandate from the people.

Resigning on the basis of demands from some section of the people will amount to disrespecting the mandate, he added.

No one, including the UNC, supported nor opposed the three Bills before they were passed, he claimed and questioned why such a furore has been kicked up now without understanding the three Bills.

The people have been misled, he claimed.

Before the said three Bills were passed, the State unit president of the NPF had announced that they do support the demand to implement ILPS in the State.

The U-turn now on the pretext that the Bills are against the interest of the tribal people defies logic, he added.

Putting the record straight, the Deputy Chief Minister said that when the three Bills, namely, the Protection of Manipur Peoples' Bill 2015, the Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms (Seventh Amendment) Bill 2015 and the Manipur Shops and Establishments (Second Amendment) Bill 2015, were taken up in the House, none of the NPF MLAs opposed it.

In fact they all took part in passing the three Bills.

To lodge their protest, the four NPF MLAs have submitted their resignation papers to the Assembly Speaker.

Even today, the Government is keeping its doors open to modify, delete or add any provision or section to the Bills if it hurts the interest of any community, said Gaikhangam.

Enough time was given to everyone to lodge their protest before the three Bills were passed, he added.

Stating that every issue can always be discussed and points of disagreement can always be ironed out after due discussions, Gaikhangam appealed to the hill based CSOs to talk things over.

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