When people from across the state upraises against the central government pack to extend the cease fire between NSCN-IM and the Government of India without territorial limits during June 2001 no power could be used to tame or suppress the peoples’ movement. Realising the momentum of the peoples’ uprising the central government was left with no choice but to withdraw the three words – “without territorial limits” on July 27 of the same year resulting to strengthen the agenda of the NSCN-IM. In 2004 after a lady, alleged by the SF as a cadre of an underground group was mercilessly rape and murdered after picking her up from her own residence at Bamon Kampu in Imphal East, series of protest sparked in the state. The potential of the kind of protest which upraises in the backdrop of the extra judicial killing, with no differences of opinion or ideology among the people of the state spread far and wide drawing supports from even among the humanist group operating in the mainland India. Addition to that the un relentless protest by Sharmila and the subsequent uprising of the people of the state against the so called draconian act has left with no choice to the Union government but to constitute a commission to review act called Jeevan Reddy Commission. After thorough study of the act the committee has recommended to scrap the act. But with all sort of techniques the government perhaps had thrown the committee’s recommendation to the dustbin.
After the government authority experience the kind of uprising those in the paid service now had successfully work out to oust any such people movement. May be this is the reason that the issue of AFSPA or the issue pertaining to the safeguarding of the territorial boundary of the state could not march ahead like the one the people unitedly struggle together.
It was again, the ILPS movement, the technique of the protest surprised the state government, and political gamble to delay the peoples’ aspiration failed, prompting the elected representative to pass the Bills reluctantly. May be a direct planning, sooner the Bills were passed similar opposition from people from Hill area was successfully triggered. Nine persons died in the protest against the demand of the people in valley area on the following day that the Bills were passed at Manipur Legislative Assembly on August 31, 2015, while a student was killed in uprising demanding the ILPS like legislation.
It took another government (the present N. Biren Singh govt.) to cremate the dead bodies by sorting out the differences.
When all was supposedly going well, another issue which is a potential threat to the existence of indigenously people is the CAB (the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2016).
Since, 2000 there is no dearth of any problem which ignited to major one, keeping halt to the day today normal life on every month of a year. The perception that the new regime will end such a chaos still remains a dream. The performance of the new govt. led by Chief Minister N. Biren in the first year was somehow satisfactory but the second year was a more threatening. The crisis of Manipur University over a RSS man who was sent as the Vice Chancellor rocks the state.
So, it is clear that the ILPS demand which was also agreed and passed by state Assembly is in no way going to see light. And for sure if the BJP return to power once again the state might witness turmoil.
Having experience the kind of peoples’ movement, the present government should now focus on various issues which might triggered unnecessary peoples’ uprising. Saying so, it will be wrong to encourage suppressing the peoples’ voice using force; however, a courage to ‘correct’ the ‘wrong’ instead of making ‘right’ the ‘wrong’ is the best policy.
