Imphal, March 02: Questioning whether Barak area in Jiribam sub-division is within Manipur or Bangladesh, the indigenous Meitei settlers of the area have demanded the Govt to stop the atrocities and harassments meted out to them by the security force and outsiders or else, an intense agitation will be launched from March 5.Speaking to reporters at the AMSU headquarters today, Meitei settlers at Barak said that ever since the security force launched Operation Tornado in October last year, the indigenous settlers have been harassed by the security personnel as well by migrant Bangladeshis.

To meet the challenge, the indigenous settlers have formed the Meitei Development Association, Barak Area, said the president of the Association Kh Goura Meitei.

The excesses and harassments by the security force and the Bangladeshis is increasing day by day, said Goura and added that some relatives of Meitei people who had come from Assam to meet them were arrested by the Army and tortured including electric shocks.

The harassments include forcing the Meitei people to don the uniform or either the Indian Army or Assam Rifles and making them work in the hills and interior parts, said Goura.

Forced labour is also common, said the president and added that many times, they have been forced to carry the goods of the security personnel without pay.

Many presentations have been submitted to the local MLA and Works Minister Th Debendra but till date no concrete steps have been taken up to stop the harassments of the indigenous people, charged Goura.

Following a petition to deploy either the IRB or MR at Barak, some personnel of MR from Tamenglong in January were posted at Barak, he said.

The public arranged their stay and food, but they were pulled back on February 5.A son of a local pradhan a Bengali named Nando came along with an Army officer and took away household goods including TV sets, CD players and even fans from the local people, alleged a member of the association and added that later it came to light that the man identified as an Army officer was not in the Army.

Accusing the State Government of not doing anything to look into the problems of the people, who have fled their homesteads, another member of the association said that till date the local MLA has provided two bags of rice, some lentils, two bottles of cooking oil, some seedlings at the refugee camp opened at Jiribam.

The fact that indigenous Meitei people are being harassed by the Bengalis, migrants from Bangladesh shows that the writ of the State Government does not run at Barak.

In case the Government really thinks that Barak is not a part of Manipur, then it should be deleted from the map of Manipur, said the association and demanded that the Government should declare whether Barak is in Manipur or in Bangladesh.

The association demanded the State Govt ensure indigenous people of Barak are not harassed and added that IRB should be posted there.

If the IRB personnel are not deployed at Barak within a month, then the Meitei people of Barak will leave their homesteads and come to Imphal, warned the association members.

They also demanded that local MLA Th Debendra resign from his post.

Representatives of UPF, HRA, IPSA, HERICOUN, Tammi-Chingmi Lup, AMSU, MSF, MAFYF DESAM, Nupi Samaj, Shinnai Lamjing Lup and Kangleichan were present at the press briefing and they also demanded that the State Government should do what it can to let the Meitei people settle peacefully in Barak.

The demands of the association, which were backed by the voluntary organisations include, deployment of IRB at Barak, withdrawing the Army, providing adequate relief materials to the refugee camp at Jiribam and to punish those responsible for the murder of a Meitei some time back.

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