BJP ridicules NFSB, backs ILP
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, July 07 2013: Terming the National Food Security Bill of the UPA Government as a political gimmick to gain electoral profit in the upcoming Lok Sabha election and predicting that such cheap politics would prove costly for cash-strapped North Eastern States, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has reiterated its support on implementing Inner Line Permit System in Manipur.

Speaking at a press conference convened today at the Nityaipat Chuthek office of Manipur Pradesh BJP, party's national general secretary and Manipur in-charge Tapir Gao observed that among other schemes the National Food Security Bill (NFSB) not put up for debate in the Parliament but promulgated through the 'ordinance' route reaffirms that the UPA is relying on political gimmicks to gain electoral mileage.

The 'ordinance' route is also in violation of Article 123 of the Indian Constitution and has been duly exposed by an advocate whose PIL pointed out that 'ordinance' route is applicable when there is 'emergency' situation, said the BJP leader who also explained that effective implementation of the Bill entails an efficient PDS mechanism in the respective States.

With the Bill aiming to cover 67 percent of the country's population entailing extra expenditure of Rs 1.25 lakh crore, huge amount of the project will ultimately fill the pockets of Congress MLAs and Ministers of Manipur where the PDS is 'simply a fiasco', Tapir said and added that in BJP-ruled States like Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, etc., similar schemes are in vogue mainly due to efficiency of the PDS.

Regarding the raging issue of ILP, which he noted as a serious social challenge of the State, the BJP MP said rising demographic imbalance by way of 'population dilution of indigenous people' and threat posed to social identity, arts and culture, merits an effective legislation.

Highlighting that safeguarding identity of the indigenous people had been one of the election manifestoes of the BJP in the last two assembly elections and the previous Parliamentary polls, he also pledged the party's support and contribution in protecting the indigenous people of Manipur.

Citing prolonged promulgation of AFSPA 1958 as the genesis of fake encounters in Manipur and accusing successive Congress Government in the State for failure to control the law and order issue, Tapir Gao affirmed that recent findings/confirmations by a Supreme Court-constituted panel about stage-managed killings in Manipur only substantiate the people's apprehension that security forces have been turning their guns on innocent people rather than protecting them.

It is also ironical that most of the fake encounter cases, out of 1528 similar incidents listed in a PIL, exposed by the justice Santosh Hedge-headed inquiry commission had indeed taken place when the Chief Minister was in charge of the Home department, noted the BJP leader holding the CM equally responsible for the unjustifiable blood-sheds as the latter was also the chairman of the Unified Command, which oversees security operation in Manipur.

Pointing to defunct Manipur State Human Rights Commission and State Information Commission as an insult to democratic principles/institutions, Tapir stated that Government of Manipur yet to give a convincing clarification on the controversial multi-crore Loktak Lake sanitisation project is yet another indication that corruption is widespread in the State.

Claiming that the K-Pro Pvt Ltd firm entrusted for the Loktak scheme is fictitious, he demanded public announcement on the status of the tender-papers, formation of a probe panel headed by retired Supreme Court justice, arrest of K-Pro promoters along with officials concerned, and declaration of welfare measures taken up by the LDA for the fishing communities and those displaced by the Congress Government under the garb of the Loktak scheme.

highlighting that there is no accountability yet on where the 10 percent fund provided to each of the North Eastern States have been utilised in the last two years, he said apart from Nagaland Chief Minister demanding detailed information from the Central Government on fund released by the Doner Ministry other CMs of the region have been remaining silence on the issue thereby providing another example that Congress-ruled States in the region have become a haven for corrupt individuals.

BJP national secretary and Bihar MLA Rameshwar Chaurasia and BJP Manipur pradesh president Th Chaoba were also present at the media briefing.

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