"Forget and forgive is the only way forward"
Source: The Sangai Express
Kakching, July 15 2023:
Forget and forgive is the only way forward, observed Sakir Ahmed who is a social worker in Wabagai Assembly segment in Kakching district.
Speaking to this Correspondent, Sakir decried the prolonged turmoil situation in the State since May 3 and said that the Central Government's indifferent attitude has aroused all the suspicion of effort to break the State into pieces.
If the Centre wants to end the turmoil, it won't take too long, he said while expressing regret over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's stance on the issue.
The Prime Minister's silence on the issue is very surprising and his apathy towards the people of Manipur is unexpected, said Sakir who also questioned whether he has forgotten Manipur is a part of India.
The Prime Minister has all the time to conduct poll activities, attend even smallest events, go for foreign tours when hundreds are killed, thousands of houses and properties are destroyed and burnt down in this small State, he said.
Turning a blind eye to these situations and not reaching out to the people even after two months is nothing but an act of disrespect to the people of Manipur, he said.
Sakir continued that the Central Government has deployed thousands of Central forces but it has failed to contain the situation, quell the misunderstandings and enmity among the feuding communities.
Moreover, the Central has failed to create a platform to bring the communities together and work towards a possible solution, he said.
The situation has left every section in the State in dire straits, farmers have been constrained from conducting agricultural works, students have been bereft of academic activities and prices of all essential commodities have shot up in an unprecedented manner, he said.
The Centre should know the people of Manipur will never accept the idea of separate administration or a State within Manipur, he said while urging the Centre to do the needful to end the crisis at the earliest.
He also took note of the imposition of internet ban, blockades which have taken toll on economic and social aspects.
Appealing to both the communities to bury the hatchets, Sakir said both the communities are parts and parcel of the State and hostility, arson, killings would bring no good.
The only way forward is to forget and forgive, he continued while calling upon all CSOs of both communities to come to the same table and work towards a peaceful solution.