Courts are meant to uphold law and order. What happened in Manipur in the last 3 weeks or so is to a large extent due to the flawed judgement passed by the Judiciary. Due to this error in making a Judgement the entire North East is now a burning cauldron. Like in so many cases, why did the court not further push back the judgement by a few more years. In towns and villages across India’s north-eastern state of Manipur, properties have been reduced to ashes while neighboring properties stand untouched, after eruption of ethnic violence in which more than 70 persons were murdered and 30,000 forced to flee. The bloodshed which began on 3 May has mostly abated, but there is little hope of a swift return to normality. Food is scarce; a curfew is still enforced by the army and paramilitary troops. The internet remains suspended; shops, schools and offices are closed; thousands of people remain stranded in crowded and unsanitary refugee camps. And reports of fresh violence over the weekend prompted fresh displacements. There was a civil war like situation but thanks largely to the Army the situation have improved from what it was.
Western media as expected made Christians Kukis as the victims. Media reports indicated the victims were from the mainly Christian hill tribes such as the Kukis, but members of the mostly Hindu Meitei people were also targeted. This is and was far from the truth; it was the Meitei community a Hindu Vaishnav community which bore the brunt in the initial violence. It is quite obvious that Meitei at one point of time would take up to violence for retribution.
Gr. Captain R K Das
In towns where the two communities once lived warily alongside each other, the idea of a return to such uneasy harmony seems unthinkable in the near future after so much violence when friends and neighbours stood by as men, women and children were killed. Kukis and Meitei say to live in harmony together is impossible. They can never be our neighbours. Not after what’s happened. The Kukis are more vocal in voicing their concern.
The states of north-east India wedged between Bangladesh, China and Myanmar – are a patchwork of ethnic groups, many of them shot through with longstanding enmities. The spark for the latest outbreak of violence in Manipur was a plan to grant the majority Meitei the status of a “scheduled tribe” which would give them access to quotas in government jobs and colleges under India’s affirmative action policy.
Tribal leaders say the Meiteis are already better off and dominate the government, police, and civil service. Granting them more privileges would be unfair, the Kukis argue, and would allow the Meiteis access to the forest lands which have been occupied by the tribes for centuries.
Each group blames the other for the violence. Conspiracy theories abound which have furthered weakened what little trust the Kukis had in the government. Police have been accused of favouring the majority Meitei community. The Kukis evacuated to the safety of army-run camps claimed police did not defend them, or even joined the mobs.
After a meeting in New Delhi with India’s home minister, Amit Shah, Manipur’s chief minister N Biren Singh said “The territorial integrity of Manipur would be protected at all costs". People say there is no chance that the small number of Kukis who once lived in Meitei majority areas will ever return – or vice versa. The presence and role of Army is the only saving grace as of now. To prevent any further violence the State Govt needs to be seen as impartial for people to have faith. The heat of hatred and violence in my opinion has not yet died down. For the sake of Manipur and NE, all stakeholders need to rise beyond their interest and bring peace to this land.
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