New Delhi: Former Manipur chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh, after attending the all-party meeting called in New Delhi by Union home minister Amit Shah on June 24, said he was not given adequate time to put forth his suggestions on how to bring peace in the violence-ridden state.
Ibobi Singh – who was the state’s chief minister for 15 consecutive years before the incumbent chief minister of the Bharatiya Janata Party, N. Biren Singh, took over in 2017 – was the only representative from Manipur at the meeting.
The rest of the invitees included chief ministers of Meghalaya and Sikkim among others.
Later, speaking to reporters at the Congress headquarters, Ibobi Singh, also the president of the state Congress, said he was barely given “seven-eight minutes” to speak at the meeting.
Singh said he intervened after Shah’s address and asked to table points put together by him and his party. These included suggestions to overcome rampant violence in the state. However, Singh was not allowed to elaborate, he said. “The home minister refused to give me any time, said, ‘Ibobi, You can come and meet me later’.”
“This was most unfortunate on my part,” Singh added.
The former chief minister also underlined the possible reasons for the home minister asking him to stop midway through his speech.
“I began by saying two things. One, that the all-party meeting which the government is finally holding after 50 days of violence in Manipur should have been chaired by the prime minister. I also said the prime minister has not spoken a word about Manipur till now. During the elections, things may be different, but after the elections, a prime minister is everybody’s prime minister.”
Singh also said in his opening remarks that the all-party meeting should have been held in Imphal instead of New Delhi for the people of the state to get a message that the Union government was serious about peace and normalcy in the state and that their pain was felt nationally.
“We may be a tiny state but we also keep the country secure by dint of protecting an international border with Myanmar,” he said.
Soon after articulating this train of thought, Singh said, he was asked by Shah to wind up his speech. Since he was not given any time after that, the Congress released the eight points that it had readied to suggest to the government at the all-party meeting.
Congress chief spokesperson Jairam Ramesh, sharing the dais with Singh at the press meet on June 24 evening, read out the following points.
- This all-party meeting should have been chaired by the PM who has not said a single word on Manipur in the past 50 days.
- This all-party meeting would have been better if it had been chaired by the PM and had been held in Imphal. This would have sent a clear message to the people of Manipur that their pain and distress is also a matter of national anguish.
- All armed groups must be disarmed immediately without any compromise.
- The state government has failed miserably in providing effective governance when it has been needed most. The Chief Minister himself has admitted publicly twice his failure to handle the situation and deal with the crisis. He has also asked for forgiveness of the people. On March 11, 2023 he unilaterally withdrew the state government’s commitment to the tripartite Agreement on Suspension of Operations with certain militant groups claiming to be upholders of Kuki interests. This move of his was later rejected by the Union Home Ministry but by then enough damage had been done. This is one glaring example in a series of blunders. The Chief Minister should be replaced immediately.
- The unity and territorial integrity of Manipur should not be compromised with in any manner.
- Grievances of each and every community must be heard and addressed sensitively.
- Steps should be taken by the Union Government to ensure availability of essential commodities by keeping the two national highways open and secure at all times.
- A package of relief, rehabilitation, resettlement, and livelihood for the affected people must be prepared without delay. The relief package announced is grossly inadequate.