The main goal of the upcoming government led by PM Modi will be to bring peace to troubled Manipur by holding discussions, stated the Union Home Minister.
According to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, restoring peace in conflict-torn Manipur through discussions and without splitting the state would be the top priority of the future Center government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Speaking at a rally in Imphal to drum up support for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate from the Inner Manipur Lok Sabha seat, Basanta Kumar Singh, Shah stated that the upcoming election is a contest between groups seeking to divide Manipur and those striving to maintain its unity.
Shah made his second visit to Manipur since the ethnic clashes started on May 3 of last year. “I want to tell people residing in the (Imphal) valley and hills of Manipur that in the coming days Narendra Modi’s priority is to bring peace to the state by talking to all sides and keeping the state united,” Shah said.
Manipur has been experiencing ethnic clashes between the Meiteis, who are the predominant group in the Imphal Valley, and the Kukis, who make up the majority in certain hill districts, since May of last year. This violence has resulted in the loss of 221 lives and the displacement of around 50,000 people.
The violence has caused divisions on the ground, with both groups erecting barricades at district borders and restricting entry for people from the other community. Since the violence began, Kuki MLAs, including seven from the ruling BJP, have called for the establishment of a separate administration in areas where they are the majority.
Security was tightened in Imphal hours before Shah arrived in the state capital. Snipers were stationed on buildings close to the rally site at Hapta Kangjeibung public area, and police and paramilitary troops had taken control of the city’s roadways. It was required because, just two days prior, on April 13, two men were shot and killed in a shootout at a village about 32 kilometers from Imphal, leaving their bodies damaged.
“There was no development in Manipur during the previous Congress rule. Over the past six years, the BJP-led government in the state has endeavored to change that, but unfortunately, there have been incidents of ethnic clashes. I want to assure everyone that in the future, we will engage with all parties and work towards establishing peace without sacrificing the state’s unity,” Shah stated. “This is the commitment of the Narendra Modi government.”
Shah accused the previous Congress governments at the Centre and state of ignoring Manipur.
“This election is not about BJP versus Congress, but about those who seek to divide Manipur and those who aim to maintain its unity,” he emphasized. “Wherever the Congress goes, it talks about division. It was responsible for the partition of the country (into India and Pakistan).”
It still discusses splitting India into north and south. In Manipur, they developed a plan to divide the state. Shah continued, “I want to stress that nobody has the courage to split Manipur, and we won’t allow it to happen.
Shah also addressed the Center’s decision, announced in February, to seal the India-Myanmar border and end the free movement agreement, which permitted people residing along the border to travel up to 16 kilometers into the other country without requiring a visa and stay for up to two weeks.
“There’s a plot to alter the demographics of a small state like Manipur by allowing illegal immigrants from Myanmar to infiltrate. The government under Narendra Modi has made the decision to seal the borders with Myanmar to safeguard Manipur. We have commenced efforts to seal the boundary. The Free Movement Regime was being misused for smuggling narcotics, so we opted to abolish it,” he explained.
Shah attributed the peace in the northeast, a region plagued by insurgency since Independence, to efforts led by Modi. He noted that more than 10 peace agreements have been reached with militant groups in the region in recent years, leading to over 9,000 members of these groups surrendering their weapons.
“Manipur was never respected by the Congress. When Okram Ibobi Singh was chief minister, there were hundreds of people killed in fake encounters, thousands of road blockades, and three years of conflict, according to Shah.
Shah brought to light the approximately 750 deaths that occurred in the ethnic battles between the Kukis and Nagas in Manipur in 1992, among the Meiteis and Pangals in 1993, and the Kukis and Paites in 1997.
Shah emphasized that it was the BJP-led Center that chose to enforce the Inner Line Permit system in Manipur to monitor the entry of outsiders into the state. He highlighted that during the Congress-led government’s tenure from 2004 to 2014, ₹39,000 crore was allocated for Manipur’s development. In contrast, since 2014, the BJP-led Union government has allocated ₹1,20,000 crore to the state.
Shah listed the state’s development initiatives, which included building hospitals, train lines, highways, and air connectivity. In the following five years, he committed, that every Manipur resident would have access to cooking gas, electricity, and a toilet, as well as ₹5 lakh in health insurance.
Voting for the Inner Manipur seat, covering districts like Imphal East, Imphal West, and Thoubal, is scheduled for April 19, along with certain areas of the Outer Manipur constituency. The remaining areas of the Outer Manipur seat, reserved for tribal communities, will vote on April 26.
All political parties in the northeastern state have been conducting their campaigns without large gatherings, flag displays, or the use of loudspeakers. Instead, meetings are being held behind closed doors and in the residences of village leaders.
The militant Meitei group Arambai Tenggol issued a warning, advising against using flags and instead for low-key activism. Everyone is adhering to it. A female BJP executive member asked to remain anonymously stated, “The AT stated that this was required to honor the feelings of the thousands who suffered in the racial conflicts. “This is the first time in recent weeks that we have seen so many party flags or such a large gathering in the city.”
In response to the minister’s speech, Manipur Congress working president K Devbrata stated that Shah’s assertions regarding the implementation of the Inner Line Permit (ILP) and border fencing in the state are “unfounded and untrue.” He claimed that the ILP hasn’t been effectively enforced, and the initiative for border fencing along the Indo-Myanmar border began during the 2012-13 Congress regime. Devbrata accused Shah of falsehoods by claiming it was executed by the BJP government at the Center.
Asserting that all challenges during Congress administrations were resolved, the Manipur Congress working president emphasized that this hasn’t been the case with the BJP. He highlighted that during Shah’s visit to Manipur in June of the previous year, he pledged to provide a resolution within 10 days to address the ongoing crisis. However, according to the Congress leader, this promise was not fulfilled.
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