Nominating the titular king of Manipur , Leishemba Sanajaoba, as the candidate of the lone Rajya Sabha seat of Manipur, is perhaps an act of a matured and far sighted political party. Yes, BJP has picked the right person, and the very act of choosing the symbolic head of the state to represent the people of the state at the upper house of the parliament showed that, the central leaderships of the BJP are fully committed with their mission of making a new India. May be the man who gave a clear understanding of the state’s political scenario and to recognize the titular king’s significant role in bridging the sense of alienation by the people of the region, was Chief Minister N. Biren Singh; but never before in the history of India after it became republic had ever realized the important of giving respect to our symbolic king. Politically it is a correct decision to bridge the sense of alienation between Manipuri people and the Mainland India but, it is also important for titular king Leishemba Sanajaoba to realize that the institution of our kingship is also equally important.
Leaving aside all critical comments on his being accepting the seat for the lone Rajya Sabha seat, Leishemba Sanajaoba should also think that he will be occupied with various tasks once he was elected as member of Rajya Sabha and he may find less time to attend at cultural and traditional rituals which cannot be done without him. March 26 is the date of Election of the lone seat and before that it will be best for all if he renounce his present position and hand over it to his son or to his next kin as it has been a tradition to replace the king by his son or next kin.
India today is a democratic country and no one like to restore the Monarch or feudal rule. Leishemba Sanajaoba is no doubt a citizen of the country and he had every right to contest the election. But saying so, he needs to preserve the cultural and historical pride of the state by keeping alive the traditional institution. And the best way to do it will be handing over of his position to his son.
