PPAM wires Gwaltabi case to Murmu
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, May 27 2025:
The People's Progressive Alliance, Manipur (PPAM) has written to President Draupadi Murmu, seeking urgent action in response to the May 20 incident at Gwaltabi, where a State Transport bus was ordered to conceal its Manipur signage by the personnel of the 4th Mahar Regiment.
The memorandum was jointly signed by the member organisations of PPAM viz All India Tanzeem-E Insaaf-Manipur (AITI-M), All Manipur Democratic Students' Organisation (AMDSO), All Manipur Meitei Pangal Clubs' Organisation (AMMPACO), Apunba Awonba Manipur Amagidamak (AAMA), Committee of Peaceful Coexistence, Manipur (CPCM), Committee on Relief & Rehabilitation (CRR), Federal Students' Organisation, Kangleipak (FESOK), Federation of Indigenous People's Democratic Movement (FIDM), Imagi Meira (IM), Kanglei People Against Narcotics & Psychotropic Substances (Kanglei Panas), Manipur International Youth Centre (MIYC), Meetei Meitei Tribe Union (MMTU), Minority Students' Association (MSA), Nupi Union For Peace and Integrity (NUPI), United Meitei Pangal Committee (UMPC), Yelhoumee Phurup (YP) and Youth Collective Manipur (YCM).
In the memorandum, PPAM demanded immediate resignation of the Union Home Minister and Union Defence Minister.
It also demanded removal of Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla, Security Adviser Kuldiep Singh, Chief Secretary Prashant Kumar Singh and Director General of Police Rajiv Singh.
Saying that the Gwaltabi incident has ignited widespread and intense public outrage, it added that the sequence of the events surrounding the 4th Mahar Regiment's actions on May 20, 2025, represents a profound and blatant disregard for civil liberties and the sovereign identity of Manipur.
PPAM also said that the 'forceful suppression' of peaceful demonstrators by security forces near Raj Bhavan in Imphal on May 24 constitutes a grave violation of civil liberties and democratic principles.
"Protesters, predominantly women, were exercising their Constitutional rights to peaceful assembly and free expression, voicing dissent against the erasure of "Manipur" from a State Transport bus� a symbolic affront to Manipur's identity.
Despite the non-violent nature of the protest, security personnel employed excessive force, including tear gas and smoke bombs, to disperse the crowd.
This aggressive response resulted in injuries to at least eight individuals, who required hospitalisation," it said.
The memorandum also urged the President to instruct the Army and BSF to allow all MST buses bearing the "Manipur State Transport" insignia to operate freely on all the State and National Highways in Manipur and recommend opening all National and State Highways for the free movement of all communities in Manipur.
Take stem actions against terrorists and antisocial elements who are looting and collecting illegal taxes on the Highways for decades, it demanded.
PPAM, meanwhile, called on Parliament to introduce a Constitutional amendment exempting Manipur from Article 3 of the Indian Constitution, citing its historical status as a sovereign Nation prior to joining India on October 15, 1949 .
PPAM also urged the President to issue an Ordinance guaranteeing the territorial integrity of Manipur, as it existed before October 15, 1949, and ensuring that it remains unchanged under all circumstances.
The memorandum also proposed the insertion of a new clause in the Constitution under Article 3, acknowledging Manipur's historical status.
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