New Delhi: Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh has lost the trust of people and a solution to the ongoing violence is not possible under his leadership, according to the lone Lok Sabha MP of BJP ally Naga Peoples Front (NPF), Lorho S. Pfoze.
In an interview to ThePrint, Pfoze, who represents the Outer Manipur constituency, said the situation in Manipur was very grim and he didn’t understand why the Centre had failed to bring peace in the state.
The NPF is an alliance partner in the Biren Singh government, with two party members — NPF chief Awangbow Newmai and Khashim Vashum — serving as ministers in the state. It’s part of the BJP-led NDA’s northeast-centred coalition NEDA.
Pfoze’s comments come after a renewed public outcry over the Kuki-Meitei violence in Manipur following a viral video of two women being paraded naked by a mob. The violence has now continued for nearly three months, claimed over 150 lives, and displaced thousands.
CM Biren Singh is part of the Meitei community, which forms the majority in Manipur. The NPF, meanwhile, represents the tribal Nagas, the third largest demographic group in Manipur after the Kukis, who are also tribals.
The ethnic clashes, rooted in deep distrust on both sides over a host of issues, began amid fresh conflict over the Meiteis’ demand for Scheduled Tribe status.
“There is a perception that the Biren Singh government is not neutral to other communities, and this has led to continuing anger in Manipur,” Pfoze said. “There is a need for alternative leadership in the state.”
The state, he added, “had gained development, prosperity until this problem started”.
“Suddenly, one day, it started, and the state went back by 10-15 years,” he said. “Hope of people looking at Manipur as an investment destination has been shattered… people are fearful of travelling to Manipur. Unless they take tough measures, unless they put [the perpetrators] behind bars, things will not move.”
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‘Very ugly incidents every now and then’
Asked about the current situation in Manipur, Pfoze said there was hope for improvement after Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s four-day visit in May.
“There was a period of lull, but after that the situation aggravated again, and it has been going on like this,” he added. “There are very ugly incidents every now and then. Arson is still going on, killing is still going on… It’s very unfortunate that the state has been unable to contain the violence.”
Those perpetrating the violence are “at large, especially those who have sophisticated weapons”, Pfoze said. “They are going around creating lot of terror and fear among the community.”
“We expected that the home minister’s visit will improve the law and order situation, even Article 355 was supposed to have been imposed, but it has not been effective,” he added.
Mobs are out of control, he said, adding that the fact that “the government itself is unable to control [the situation] is causing a lot of anger among the people.”
To a question about why the government had failed to bring peace, the NPF MP raised the issue of its “intention”.
“It’s very difficult to understand why it has failed. I think, to some extent, many people suspect that the government is allowing this thing to happen, I don’t know for what reason.”
Pfoze spoke of a distrust among the Kukis towards Biren Singh, saying there was a feeling that the government was siding with one community.
“The Kuki community has completely lost trust in him. Even the 10 MLAs from the Kuki community submitted a memorandum urging a separate administration… this calls for doing away with the state government,” he said. “When such things are happening, if he is still at the helm of affairs, I don’t think things will improve. Any call for peace will not work.”
As a solution, the NPF MP suggested “immediately installing a government that has the trust of people”.
“Unless we have trust of people… and confidence of people… things will not work. It’s up to to the Centre to work on it. The Centre has to take a call.”
‘Resignation seen as stage-managed’
Pfoze said he failed to “understand why the Centre is not willing to take action against Biren Singh”, adding that many saw the CM’s offer to resign as “stage-managed drama”.
He was referring to Biren Singh’s reported plan to resign in June, which he is said to have junked after a show of support and a request by ministers to reconsider his decision.
“The Centre may be waiting and observing a bit, I think…” he said, adding that the other “communities that have been neutral to the violence [including the Nagas] are also beginning to feel very, very uneasy”.
He said the situation had put the NPF in a dilemma regarding the Biren Singh government.
“When things like this are happening with our government, definitely we are also affected,” he said, when asked if the NPF had lost faith in the state government.
“On the one hand, we need peace, development, we need to grow. On the other hand, we are losing people’s trust. This is the dilemma we are in,” he said. “Our trust is not with Biren Singh, but we trust the leadership of the Centre. We hope the Centre will do something that… will help us regain trust of people.”
Asked whether their sentiments have been conveyed to the Union government, he said they had approached the home minister and various leaders of the BJP.
“We have already mentioned what is necessary. Something has to be done, a review is needed.”
(Edited by Sunanda Ranjan)
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