Hands of Delhi since May 4, 2023 No answer yet for the people
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No magic wand available. This is the truth and Delhi knows this. Another truth also stands-The truth that the approaches adopted by Delhi have so far failed to yield the needed result. First the Centre tried to deal with the situation with the line, ‘The Chief Minister of Manipur is co-operating,’ a line that came from no one lesser than Union Home Minister Amit Shah while discussing Manipur on the floor of Parliament. Next came the stint of President’s Rule under its hand picked man, Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla from February 13, 2025 till February 4, 2026. And Yumnam Khemchand hand picked to occupy the hot seat. The one common thread running through these three arrangements is the endless violence, peppered with the words ‘condemn,’ ‘assure’ and more recently ‘The case will be handed over to the NIA.’ Terms which have gone viral on the social media. That an answer will be hard to come by is something that can be easily gauged from the fact that no one has deemed it fit or proper at this stage to talk the language of peace, the language of reconciliation and no one is ready to publicly admit that other than co-existence, there is no other way for the people. Or if there is anyone willing to talk the language of peace, not enough space has been given to him or her. A look at the newspapers or a listen to any of the local TV channels will be more than enough to illustrate the point that is sought to be made here. Loud and occasionally rough words, tough postures, name calling, etc is the trend, a trend that has been the reality for the greater part of the period since Manipur went up in flames in the evening of May 3, 2023. Far from the situation getting better or a situation being created to allow Manipur to walk the path of normalcy, what one sees is the violence taking a turn for the worse, with now the Nagas inexorably drawn towards it. So from a situation when Manipur grappled with the stand off or clashes between the Meiteis and the Kukis, today the Kuki-Naga clash has also been added to the profile of Manipur. The highways are today there not to connect people and promote trade and business but are there for muscle flexing exercises. Since May 4, 2023, the markets at Imphal no longer see Kuki vegetable vendors and in the hills, particularly at Kangpokpi and the adjoining areas such as Motbung, Kalapahar and others, the roadsides are today no longer dotted with small eateries and hotels opened by Meitei folks who made their presence felt selling the much loved Changang and Bora not to speak of the all time favourite of everyone, the Singju. The blow on the social interactions among people of different communities is stark and flummoxing it is that it is Delhi which has been lording over this ugly reality for over three years.
Delhi and one can immediately recall the debate over whether Article 355 of the Constitution has been imposed on Manipur or not during the initial days of the violence, but it became more and more apparent that it has been Delhi calling the shots. Soon after Manipur went up in flames in the evening of May 3, 2023, Delhi despatched its chosen man Kuldiep Singh as Security Advisor as well as to chair the Unified Command. This was when N Biren Singh was the Chief Minister and while present incumbent Yumnam Khemchand has asserted that he is now the Chairman of the Unified Command, no one knows whether a formal order to this effect has been issued or not. It has also became apparent that appointing the Chief Secretary and the DGP of the State is no longer the prerogative of the Chief Minister, though the appointment orders have come out in the name of the Governor. For over three years the State police have been strictly divided over community affiliation with the result that no Kuki police officer is posted in the valley districts and no Meitei police officer is there at the Kuki dominated districts such as Churachandpur and Kangpokpi. Now one wonders whether this same ‘arrangement’ will be applied while posting Naga and Kuki officers. In short, nothing is working and the different arrangements made so far have not had the desired result. Time to think out of the box, but then one can always question, what is the box ?
Delhi and one can immediately recall the debate over whether Article 355 of the Constitution has been imposed on Manipur or not during the initial days of the violence, but it became more and more apparent that it has been Delhi calling the shots. Soon after Manipur went up in flames in the evening of May 3, 2023, Delhi despatched its chosen man Kuldiep Singh as Security Advisor as well as to chair the Unified Command. This was when N Biren Singh was the Chief Minister and while present incumbent Yumnam Khemchand has asserted that he is now the Chairman of the Unified Command, no one knows whether a formal order to this effect has been issued or not. It has also became apparent that appointing the Chief Secretary and the DGP of the State is no longer the prerogative of the Chief Minister, though the appointment orders have come out in the name of the Governor. For over three years the State police have been strictly divided over community affiliation with the result that no Kuki police officer is posted in the valley districts and no Meitei police officer is there at the Kuki dominated districts such as Churachandpur and Kangpokpi. Now one wonders whether this same ‘arrangement’ will be applied while posting Naga and Kuki officers. In short, nothing is working and the different arrangements made so far have not had the desired result. Time to think out of the box, but then one can always question, what is the box ?