A belated apology is not enough for Manipur

Manipur Chief Minister Biren Singh has finally expressed his regret over the communal violence in Manipur which has claimed the lives of more than 200 people and destroyed property worth crores of rupees in the last one and a half years, leaving thousands of people on the streets. The chief minister's confession was made while talking to journalists at the end of the year 2024. Claiming that there has been some progress in the situation in the last three to four months, he has demanded that the 35 recognised tribes of the state should live together from now on. Even as he was saying this, violent incidents were taking place in Manipur.

Also read: Ethnic violence: Manipur CM Biren Singh apologises

The conflict started in May 2023 between the Kuki community living in the hilly areas of Manipur and the Meitei community residing mostly in the Imphal valley. Even as the almost one-sided violence against the Kuki tribe continues to rage, Chief Minister Biren Singh as the ruler of the ruling party BJP has done nothing to restore peace beyond some futile negotiations. 12247 FIRs have been registered on account of violence. 625 people have been accused of causing violence. Biren Singh said that 5,600 weapons and 35,000 bullets stolen from the police were recovered. The central government has spent more than 247 crore rupees for the preparation and rehabilitation of refugee camps here.

Also read: Congress has links with Kuki outfits, gave assurances: Manipur BJP

The Supreme Court had to intervene in the matter and formed Special Investigation Teams (SITs) at a stage when the government remained passive despite the violence, killings, and destruction of property. However, the actions against the culprits are nominal. It was only after the court asked what action was taken against the extremely heinous act of parading naked two Kuki women on the streets that the state government sprung to action. The action was taken only after the video of the crime that took place in May went viral in July. According to the information of SIT itself in November 2024, out of 3023 cases, FIR was filed in only six percent of the cases. Between August 2023 and November 2024, investigative teams arrested 384 people and identified 742 suspects and 11,901 witnesses. Still the Chief Minister only apologised only after the situation worsened without his taking serious measures. Nearly three hundred churches of Christian denominations who constituted most of the Kukis, were destroyed. It is estimated that 60,000 people were displaced. Even then, the BJP-led governments at the state and the Centre did not make any serious effort to restore friendship between the people or at least contain the incidents of violence. Even as the troubled situation in Manipur hit international headlines, Prime Minister Narendra Modi remained silent. That silence was finally broken in July 2024 when he gave reply to the debate on the motion of thanks in Parliament for the new government after the general elections in 2024. Modi's non-specific call was to keep politics aside and try to restore peace in Manipur.

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It took 19 months for the Chief Minister to express his apology. But Biren Singh's apology is hardly enough. In addition to the Prime Minister's long silence for 19 months, Modi who travels extensively elsewhere in the country and across the world, has not found time to visit the burning Manipur. When a large section of the people of Biren Singh's own state is subjected to violence, when the places of worship of a sect are set on fire and women are raped, there is little point in begging for forgiveness as a New Year's message by the Chief Minister. What is needed now is to take effective steps to ensure punishment of the culprits of the riots, bring two estranged communities together and create a conflict-free atmosphere. There is also an imperative of providing rehabilitation and compensation to the people affected by the riots. The main question is whether the BJP government which is wont to divide the people to rule is ready to do these.

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