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After fresh Manipur violence, Amit Shah to visit state, hold talks with stakeholders
This is the first announcement of a high-level intervention by the Centre in Manipur since May 3, when since ethnic clashes broke out.
Union home minister Amit Shah on Thursday called for peace in violence-torn Manipur and said he will visit the northeastern state next week to hold talks with all stakeholders — the first major public intervention by the Centre since ethnic clashes broke out three weeks ago, killing 74 people and displacing another 30,000.
Speaking at an event in neighbouring Assam, Shah said only talks between various groups can bring calm. His comments came a day after fresh bouts of violence roiled a district in Manipur that had previously been relatively unscathed by the clashes that convulsed the state from May 3.
“I will go to Manipur soon and stay there for three days but before that, both groups should remove mistrust and suspicion among themselves and ensure that peace is restored in the state,” he said.
Read | Manipur: One killed, two injured in Bishnupur district in fresh violence
Union minister of state (home) Nityanand Rai, who arrived in Imphal on Thursday, told reporters that Shah will reach Manipur on May 29 to take stock of the situation and stay till June 1.
“The Centre will ensure that justice is delivered to all those who suffered in the clashes in the state, but people must hold dialogue to ensure peace….in the last six years, prior to the recent clashes, there was no blockade or bandhs in Manipur and people must ensure the return of such a situation again,” Shah said.
“Charcha ke saath hi shanti ho sakti hain (Peace can only be restored through dialogue),” he added.
This is the first announcement of a high-level intervention by the Centre in Manipur since May 3, when clashes broke out in Churachandpur town after tribal Kuki groups called for protests against a proposed tweak to the state’s reservation matrix, granting scheduled tribe (ST) status to the majority Meitei community. Violence quickly engulfed the state, displacing tens of thousands of people who fled burning homes and neighbourhoods into jungles, often across state borders. To be sure, the Indian Army has been deployed in the region since May 4.
Despite thousands of security personnel patrolling the streets of major cities and remote villages, curfew clamped over large swathes of the state, and internet suspended for three weeks now, the authorities have failed to muzzle ethnic passions that have often spilled over into violence and arson on the streets. Shah’s statements underline the urgent need for rapprochement in a state where ethnic fault lines run deep and state forces are often considered divided on community lines. The fresh violence showed that communal passions continued to drive a wedge between communities, and underlined the need for the government to bridge the divide, institute peace-building measures and remain on alert for any attempts to ratchet up sectarianism.
Signs of some of that distrust bubbled to the surface hours after Shah’s statement. A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lawmaker from the Kuki community said that they welcomed the home minister but would not meet him in the presence of chief minister N Biren Singh.
“The Kuki tribe will welcome Shah. We will extend all cooperation to him. But we don’t want to talk to Shah in presence of the chief minister. We are firm on that,” said Letzamang Haokip, the BJP legislator from Henglep in Churachandpur district.
Haokip, who, along with nine other tribal legislators, want a separate administration for the hills, a demand rejected by Biren Singh.
Earlier in the day, Shah urged the common people of Manipur to bring back normalcy in the state. He was speaking at a ceremony in Guwahati where he laid the foundation stone for the ninth campus of the National Forensic Sciences University.
“Due to a court order, some clashes have taken place in Manipur. I would appeal to brothers in Manipur to maintain peace and have belief in the system. People from both groups should first decide to maintain peace. I assure you that from the centre, justice will be done and all those indulging in violence will not be spared,” he added.
He was referring to an April 19 order, in which the Manipur high court asked the BJP-led state government to submit recommendations to the Union government to consider inclusion of Meiteis in the ST list. Meiteis comprise around 53% of the state’s population, are largely Hindus and live in the Imphal valley region. The move sparked concerns among the tribal populations, which live in the hill districts and constitute about 40% of the state’s population. Manipur has 31% reservation for STs in jobs and education.
Read: Ethno-cultural ties hold cues for Manipur turmoil
On May 3, thousands of tribal people took out a solidarity march in the state’s 10 hill districts. In Churachandpur, miscreants set ablaze a portion of the Anglo-Kuki War Memorial, sparking clashes. Retaliatory attacks quickly swept the state. Till date, at least 74 people have been killed and 200 injured, and 30,000 people have been displaced by the violence. In Meitei-majority areas such as the Imphal valley, Kukis have been at the receiving end of the violence, while in the hill districts where the Kukis are the dominant community, Meitei homes and establishments have been attacked and ransacked.
After the first throes of violence, tensions had somewhat abated. But over the last week, separate incidents of violence have worried authorities. On Sunday night, three people were shot at in Imphal. Then on Monday, a group of armed men set three abandoned houses ablaze in the state capital. On Wednesday, one person was shot dead and another suffered bullet injuries in Bishnupur district, a region that had remained relatively peaceful earlier.
State security adviser Kuldiep Singh said that a few more houses were burnt in nearby areas in retaliation on Wednesday, triggering violence. “At about 9.30am, two people received bullet injuries at Thamnapokpi foothills under Moirang police station which was due to firing from the side of the hill,” said the former Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) chief. “Immediately, the forces retaliated; one of the injured persons, namely Toijam Chandramani Singh of Churachandpur, succumbed to the injury while being taken to a hospital,” he added.
Read: In Manipur, a need for building bridges
Since the violence began, there has been no conversation between Meitei and Kuki groups. On Wednesday, a group of thirteen state lawmakers — including three ministers — from the BJP, National People’s Party and the Naga People’s Front travelled to Guwahati to meet Shah.
After attending two official events, Shah held detailed discussions in Guwahati later on Thursday evening on the situation in Manipur with a delegation of MLAs and ministers from the state representing BJP, National Peoples’ Party and Naga Peoples’ Front. The meeting was held at Assam state guest house at Koinadhora in Guwahati.
“We had a detailed discussion with the Union home minister and apprised him about the ground situation in Manipur. He asked us to work towards restoring peace and normalcy in the state at the earliest. The process will be taken forward after Shah arrives in Imphal on May 29 for a three-day visit to Manipur,” said one of the MLAs who attended the meeting on condition of anonymity.
Manipur state Congress president K Meghachandra criticised the BJP and the state government. “Although late, it is good that Shah is coming because this tension will continue. Shah seemed to have forgotten Manipur. Everything is in the hands of the Centre,” he said.
