Northeast Diary: Why is India so indifferent to the Manipur crisis? – Times of India
The Manipur crisis could turn into a major blot on the BJP’s report card in the Northeast, where it has made deep inroads in the past nine years. The unrest could also puncture its statistical claim that there has been an 80 per cent decline in insurgency-related violence in the region since 2014. Needless to say, Manipur has witnessed a revival of Kuki militancy in the past one month despite a heavy presence of central security forces.
The opposition has sharpened its attack on the saffron party’s double-engine government and questioned the prime minister’s continued silence over the situation in the sensitive border state. No wonder, “mobs” are out on the streets venting their ire against elected representatives. And those in power are feeling utterly powerless.
Union minister Rajkumar Ranjan Singh’s private residence in Imphal was attacked with petrol bombs on Thursday night. Luckily, there was no one present in the house, but a portion of the compound and three vehicles bore the brunt. On Wednesday, miscreants torched the official residence of the state’s only woman minister, Nemcha Kipgen, in Lamphel locality in Imphal.
The central minister tore into his party’s government in Manipur headed by Biren Singh, saying that the law and order situation in the state has totally failed despite the Centre’s deployment of adequate security forces.
“One engine (the state) has run out of fuel. The other engine (the Centre) has decoupled itself and is hiding in the loco shed. It is obvious that Mr Biren Singh (chief minister) has lost the confidence of all sections of the people of Manipur. It is also obvious that Mr Narendra Modi is not willing to talk to the people of Manipur nor even make an appeal for peace,” Congress leader P Chidambaram said in a tweet.
Clearly, the Centre’s approach to the Odisha train tragedy or the Gujarat cyclone has been quite different from the one adopted towards Manipur. This sounds strange given the same government talks about its inclusive policy and development mantra for the Northeast during election time.
Politics aside, it’s not only the central government but the rest of India also seems to be indifferent to the current turmoil in Manipur. How many candlelight processions have been taken out in the country demanding the government’s accountability? How many debates and discussions have been hosted by national news channels focussing on Manipur? How many Bollywood actors, artists, activists or public intellectuals have spoken up on this burning issue?
In the absence of any engaging debate, social media has become the last resort of the vested interest, who are doing more harm than good.
For god’s sake, a state has been on the boil for over 40 days; at least 120 people have died and 300 have suffered injuries. To borrow a word from United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres, silence on the Manipur crisis is “an affront to our collective conscience”.
The opposition has sharpened its attack on the saffron party’s double-engine government and questioned the prime minister’s continued silence over the situation in the sensitive border state. No wonder, “mobs” are out on the streets venting their ire against elected representatives. And those in power are feeling utterly powerless.
Union minister Rajkumar Ranjan Singh’s private residence in Imphal was attacked with petrol bombs on Thursday night. Luckily, there was no one present in the house, but a portion of the compound and three vehicles bore the brunt. On Wednesday, miscreants torched the official residence of the state’s only woman minister, Nemcha Kipgen, in Lamphel locality in Imphal.
The central minister tore into his party’s government in Manipur headed by Biren Singh, saying that the law and order situation in the state has totally failed despite the Centre’s deployment of adequate security forces.
“One engine (the state) has run out of fuel. The other engine (the Centre) has decoupled itself and is hiding in the loco shed. It is obvious that Mr Biren Singh (chief minister) has lost the confidence of all sections of the people of Manipur. It is also obvious that Mr Narendra Modi is not willing to talk to the people of Manipur nor even make an appeal for peace,” Congress leader P Chidambaram said in a tweet.
Clearly, the Centre’s approach to the Odisha train tragedy or the Gujarat cyclone has been quite different from the one adopted towards Manipur. This sounds strange given the same government talks about its inclusive policy and development mantra for the Northeast during election time.
Politics aside, it’s not only the central government but the rest of India also seems to be indifferent to the current turmoil in Manipur. How many candlelight processions have been taken out in the country demanding the government’s accountability? How many debates and discussions have been hosted by national news channels focussing on Manipur? How many Bollywood actors, artists, activists or public intellectuals have spoken up on this burning issue?
In the absence of any engaging debate, social media has become the last resort of the vested interest, who are doing more harm than good.
For god’s sake, a state has been on the boil for over 40 days; at least 120 people have died and 300 have suffered injuries. To borrow a word from United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres, silence on the Manipur crisis is “an affront to our collective conscience”.
