Amit Shah calls all-party meeting on June 24 to discuss Manipur situation

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, June 22, 2023: In the Centre’s first outreach across the political spectrum on Manipur, Union Home Minister Amit Shah has convened an all-party meeting on June 24 in New Delhi to discuss the situation in the state which has been roiled by ethnic clashes since May 3 that have claimed more than 110 lives and hardened ethnic fault-lines.

 

In a Twitter post Wednesday evening, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Home Affairs said: “Union Home Minister Shri @AmitShah has convened an all party meeting on 24th June at 3 PM in New Delhi to discuss the situation in Manipur.”

The announcement came soon after Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma met Shah in New Delhi.

Sarma, who is also convenor of the NDA’s Northeast chapter NEDA (North-East Democratic Alliance), had visited Imphal on June 10 and met Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh and several political leaders.

The Opposition has questioned the Prime Minister’s silence on the issue and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi said Wednesday that the violence had left a “deep wound” in the state. Incidentally, a day before the planned meeting, on June 23, leaders from as many as 20 Opposition parties are expected to gather in Patna to work out a strategy to counter the BJP in 2024.

An official said Shah has invited all political parties and they are likely to meet at the Parliament Library building to discuss the way forward to break the deadlock.

The Home Minister, the official said, is likely to brief Opposition leaders and allies on the current situation, and on the steps that have been taken and should be taken.

Another official said CRPF DG Sujoy Lal Thaosen also visited Manipur a few days ago and met security personnel. He also discussed measures to bring the situation under control.

Last month, Shah visited Manipur for four days and met a cross-section of people as part of efforts to restore peace. He met victims from both the Meitei and Kuki communities in relief camps, and assured them about adequate security. He said the government’s focus is to ensure their safe return home.

Shah had paid a four-day visit to the state starting May 29, meeting both Meitei and Kuki leaders and making a host of promises — provided there was a cessation of violence.

However, after initial large-scale clashes from May 3 to 5, Manipur has seen a second wave of violence, primarily in the form of arson and shootings in areas between the Kuki-dominated hills and the Meitei-dominated valley. The worst incident in the fresh flare-up was on the night of June 13, when nine people were killed in incidents of firing and arson in Aigejang village in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district.

The fresh incidents of violence have also included attacks on the homes of elected representatives, including many from the ruling BJP. In a memorandum to the PMO earlier this week, eight BJP MLAs from Manipur had highlighted that the public has lost faith in the state government.

Courtesy: Indian Express