'Conscientious voting' stressed as MAYOL launches campaign
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, January 16 2026: The Manipur Youth League (MAYOL) today launched a year-long campaign on conscientious voting christened "Politics: Vote for National Regeneration".

MAYOL launched the campaign together with Manipur University Students' Union (MUSU) at Manipur University auditorium with Prof W Nabakumar (retired Head of Department, Anthropology, MU), Editors' Guild Manipur (EGM) General Secretary Yumnam Rupachandra, MUSU vice-president Hijosh Tongbram and MAYOL president Asem Prince as presidium members.

A book titled "Politics: Vote for National Regeneration" was also released at the event.

Speaking at the gathering, Asem Prince said that MAYOL is organising the campaign to create awareness among citizens on politics and its importance.

All the incidents and issues which have unsettled Manipur had their roots in politics.

Many of the issues and challenges besieging the State have very much to do with a large number of citizens staying away from politics, and there has always been a big gap between citizens and the Government, he said.

Nowadays, citizens' voting rights are seen as something which can be bought with money, he said.

Falsehoods, deceit and unethical practices have come to define elections in Manipur.

The campaign launched today is aimed at reforming this malady and bringing about clean electoral practices in the State, the MAYOL president said.

He said that public meetings, symposiums and debates will be organised extensively in the course of the year-long campaign to create awareness among citizens about politics and its importance.

The campaign is an attempt to give a new direction to the State's politics, Prince said.

He warned that Manipur will face a very uncertain future if the present electoral practices are not reformed before it is too late and called upon all citizens to teach befitting lessons to all candidates/political parties who think they can buy people's votes.

It's time for citizens to elect capable, selfless and patriotic representatives to the Manipur Legislative Assembly, he said.

MAYOL General Secretary James Laishram remarked that during the last 75 years after its merger with the Indian Union, Manipur has degenerated to a level which will be hard to recover.

Manipur is abound with challenges but the Manipuri Nation is unable to tackle any of these challenges successfully, James said.

Even though it has been almost three years since Chin narco-terrorists launched a sustained aggression, burnt down hundreds of houses, killed a large number of people and displaced tens of thousand of people, the people of Manipur are still unable to explore a solution to the crisis, he said.

He said that Manipur is the fourth poorest State of India.

Retired IAS officer Dr RK Nimai asserted that checking election expenses is imperative for establishment of good governance.

He stressed the need for effectively checking the practice of offering money to voters during elections, particularly State Assembly elections.

Retired Session Judge A Noutuneshwari stated that women have a big role in reforming the decayed electoral practices seen in Manipur.

She said that women must not sell their voting rights during elections.

Mao Union Imphal president Puni Losi pointed out that the suffering as well as welfare of Manipur are in the hands of politicians.

Manipur will progress and remain peaceful if honest and people-centric politicians are elected as people's representatives, he said.

He also called upon all electorate to stop voting by considering only the candidates' parties or ethnicity.

Socio-political commentator Ch Bijoy said that a large number of youth are not interested in politics because of its lack of a clean image.

Most of the youth are of the view that it does not make any difference whether the elections are won by a particular candidate/party or another, Bijoy said.

Citizens/electorates must be first educated on clean and ethical electoral practices, Bijoy said.

Imphal Naga Forum publicity secretary AS Honpur Shimray called upon all electorates to elect educated, capable, people-centric and patriotic candidates as far as possible.

Money power and muscle power remain the principal determining factors of elections held in both the valley and hills.

This is the most formidable challenge to the election of competent and people-centric candidates, Honpur Shimray said.

DMU Assistant Professor (History) Dr Sayed Ahmed emphasised that politics should be issue-based and voters must be sensitive.

He also highlighted the urgent need to check the practice of buying and selling voting rights.

EGM General Secretary Yumnam Rupachandra, Prof W Nabakumar, Liangmai social activist Diphiu Prinmai, COCOMI convenor Khuraijam Athouba, MAYOL Chief Advisor Longjam Ra-tan, public speaker Dhanabir Laishram, social activist Ashang Kashar and social activist Michael Lamjathang Haokip too spoke at the event.

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