Manipur: Calls For Imposition Of President’s Rule Become More Strident

IMPHAL: Amid fresh incidents of violence in the past several days, Manipur- based Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum (ITLF) on Monday ramped up its call for imposition of President’s Rule in the violence-hit state of Manipur.

ITLF is a combination of various civil society groups and student organizations belonging to the Kuki, Mizo, Hmar and Zomi communities in the state.

The tribal organisation also issued a statement charging Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh for allegedly being responsible for the continuing unrest and violence in the state and demanding his resignation from the top post in the state.

Condemning the action by the security forces of the state, the forum strongly urged the Centre to deploy more central armed forces in the unrest- hit state in order to protect innocent villagers from violence.

The ITLF alleged that ethnic cleansing operations against the tribal people were being carried out by the BJP- led Manipur government headed by N Biren Singh since May 3, when the trouble broke out.

Many innocent tribal people were killed and a number of tribal villages burnt down in the alleged ethnic cleansing, it stated.

The forum also raised the allegation that Meitei underground cadres from valley areas were disguised in Manipur Police uniforms and allowed to perpetrate the violence and the repeated atrocious crimes against the tribal people in hill areas of the state.

CM Biren Singh’s assertion that the tribal underground groups following Suspension of Operation (SoO) were responsible for the clashes was also refuted by the forum.

In its statement, the forum said, “While the SoO groups are in their designated camps, the poor tribal villagers defending their villages with just a handful of single barrels guns and a few licensed guns were collected from them by the Army leaving them helpless or leaving them to die at the hands of the state-led machinery.”

Expressing anguish at the alleged ongoing ethnic killings and cleansing, the forum also leveled the charge that, after allowing rebels to loot arms from 7 Manipur Rifles, 8 Indian Reserve Battalion, 3 Indian Reserve Battalion, Manipur Police Training College, and 9 Manipur Rifles, the security forces are currently engaged in combing operations in tribal villages.

The Manipur Chief Minister, on Sunday, had asserted that more than 35 Kuki militants have been gunned down by security forces since May 3.

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