Noting steps taken up after Feb 4 Small but significant moves
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Sworn in on February 4 and Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand along with his Council of Ministers appear to be taking some small steps to heal Manipur. The recent visit to Jiribam wherein the Chief Minister interacted with displaced persons of both the Meitei and Hmar communities was more than symbolic, and its significance should be seen against the backdrop that this was the first visit by the Chief Minister of Manipur to Jiribam after 2023. A significant step towards taking Manipur to the path of normalcy and an opportunity for the peace makers to capitalise upon. So far no such thing is visible, probably because the focus of Manipur was forced to be on Litan, the settlement which went up in flames following a fisti-cuff between two individuals, two persons who quickly came to be identified as a Kuki and a Tangkhul. The tragedy is, no one knows or are bothered to know the identity of the two persons by name, with everyone more than satisfied with identifying them as either a Kuki or a Tangkhul. The tragedy of Litan lies here. That the State Government was keen on putting Manipur on the track of normalcy was somewhat visible in the very decision of one of the Deputy Chief Ministers, Losii Dikho, to visit Litan the day after the arson started. Significantly the Deputy Chief Minister was accompanied by the Ukhrul MLA and Saikul MLA, a Tangkhul and a Kuki incidentally. It was in line with the steps being taken up by the Government that the same Deputy Chief Minister visited Churachandpur, the place where the May 3, 2023 violence started and significant to note too that during the meeting with the Zomi Council, no political demands were put up before the Deputy Chief Minister. This is in line with the overtures taken up by the State Government and it was significant to note that the Deputy Chief Minister too stressed on peace and normalcy as the prerequisite for development to take place in the district. This is what should make the visit of Dikho to Churachandpur all that more significant. How the State Government takes off from this visit remains to be seen, but a beginning has been made. Again it was in this spirit of putting Manipur on the track of normalcy that the Chief Minister himself personally intervened and arranged a special flight at Imphal to take out ailing Vungzagin Valte for further medical treatment. This was a humane gesture and something which would have gone down well with people on either side of the clash divide.
Early days yet, but the steps taken up so far is encouraging and one hopes the State Government continues with such initiatives. Small but significant steps and this is what Manipur needs, not some grandiose announcement of over the top initiatives. The interaction with Meitei and Hmar inmates at the relief centre was not the first such step taken by Khemchand, for earlier during the President’s Rule regime, he had gone to a relief centre sheltering Kuki IDPs at Litan and interacted with them. A move which must have gone down well with the BJP leaders at Delhi and which probably could have tilted the odds in his favour when the time came to announce the next Chief Minister of Manipur. This is now in the past and the Government will now have to think on how to take things further. Visited Jiribam. Deputed the Deputy Chief Minister to visit Churachandpur. Next in line could perhaps be a visit to Moreh and interact with the people there. Now is the time to extend all the possible co-operation to the Government and the initiatives taken so far should be noted and acknowledged. To make the initiatives taken up by the State Government appear credible and noteworthy it is important for Delhi to ensure that the Chief Minister is given a free hand. Such a move can go a long way in giving credibility to the post of the Chief Minister and such a situation can help the initiatives taken up to put the State on the path of normalcy. Give the State Government its due.
Early days yet, but the steps taken up so far is encouraging and one hopes the State Government continues with such initiatives. Small but significant steps and this is what Manipur needs, not some grandiose announcement of over the top initiatives. The interaction with Meitei and Hmar inmates at the relief centre was not the first such step taken by Khemchand, for earlier during the President’s Rule regime, he had gone to a relief centre sheltering Kuki IDPs at Litan and interacted with them. A move which must have gone down well with the BJP leaders at Delhi and which probably could have tilted the odds in his favour when the time came to announce the next Chief Minister of Manipur. This is now in the past and the Government will now have to think on how to take things further. Visited Jiribam. Deputed the Deputy Chief Minister to visit Churachandpur. Next in line could perhaps be a visit to Moreh and interact with the people there. Now is the time to extend all the possible co-operation to the Government and the initiatives taken so far should be noted and acknowledged. To make the initiatives taken up by the State Government appear credible and noteworthy it is important for Delhi to ensure that the Chief Minister is given a free hand. Such a move can go a long way in giving credibility to the post of the Chief Minister and such a situation can help the initiatives taken up to put the State on the path of normalcy. Give the State Government its due.