Reopening Schools Not Alone Can Restore Normalcy, Manipur Needs Strong Political Solutions

A few schools reopened earlier this week in the strife-torn state of Manipur. ( Image Source :PTI )

Two months on, violence continues in the northeastern state of Manipur. On Friday, three people were killed near Phougakchao Ikhai village on the Bishnupur-Churachandpur border. Amid all this, schools re-opened in the state for Classes 1 to 8 with low attendance on Wednesday. However, ninety-six schools located in the worst-affected areas are still closed. The ethnic violence between Meiteis and Kukis has taken the lives of over 130 people and more than 40,000 people were displaced. Miscreants are still firing at people. Amid this, the reopening of schools raises questions. Even though education is very important for children, there is a challenge of security of the students too. Re-opening of schools isn’t going to restore normalcy.

Firstly, armed miscreants and militants, belonging to both Kuki and Meitei communities, have to be brought under control. Secondly, the state needs strong political solutions. The current government led by chief minister N Biren Singh, who has lost support among the Kukis and a section of Meiteis, is a problem. Education of children is possible only in a peaceful environment, not in a tense situation as prevailing in the northeastern state.

Left Parliamentarians On 3-Day Manipur Visit

A five-member deVisition of CPI and CPM visited the northeastern state of Manipur on Friday. They are on a three-day visit, which will end on Sunday. The delegation comprises CPM Rajya Sabha members Bikas Ranjan Bhattacharjee and John Brittas, CPI Rajya Sabha members Binoy Viswam and P Santhosh Kumar and CPI Lok Sabha member K Subba Rayan. They are expected to meet people from all communities, both in Churachandpur and Imphal Valley.

This visit of the Left MPs to the strife-torn state is a welcome step. The visit comes after former Congress president Rahul Gandhi's two-day visit to the state last week. The BJP-led Centre is yet to take any bold political step to restore normalcy fearing that it may harm its electoral calculations. It is following a wait-and-watch approach regarding political solutions and currently focuses on facing the challenge through security forces. But the pain and sufferings of the state's people need to be heard. The monsoon session of Parliament is going to begin on July 20 and it can be hoped that the Left parliamentarians visiting the state will raise their voices for the people.

BJP Faces Resistance In Northeast On Uniform Civil Code

The Narendra Modi-led BJP government’s intention to bring the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) to the country has faced resistance in the northeastern region. This week, in a letter to the Law Commission of India, Mizoram Chief Minister Zoramthanga on behalf of his party Mizo National Front opposed the proposed implementation of the UCC in the country. Noticeably, MNF is a constituent of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.

MNF isn’t the only NDA constituent of the region to oppose the UCC. Two prominent allies — Meghalaya’s ruling party National People’s Party and Nagaland’s ruling party Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party — have already expressed their opposition against UCC.

The region is a very diverse one. Different tribal communities live in the region. They have their own marriage customs. They also observe different practices for inheritance. That’s the reason, they are voicing their opposition in the region against UCC. These voices can’t be ignored as their concerns need to be heard. Any miscalculated step can ignite a fire in the region and also harm the saffron party’s prospects in the next year’s Lok Sabha elections.  It seems that BJP MP Sushil Kumar Modi, the chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Law and Justice, is aware of the region's issues. That’s the reason, he said that the tribal population of the northeast and other parts of the country must be kept away from the UCC.

Another Setback To Already-Weakened TMC In Tripura

This week Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress received another setback in the northeastern state of Tripura after former state party president Ashish Lal Singh joined the BJP. He joined the saffron party at the state party headquarters in the presence of state party president Rajib Bhattacharjee and state minister Sushanta Chowdhury. Ashish is the son of the state’s first chief minister Sachindra Lal Singh and was associated with the TMC for a long time. Early this year, Subal Bhowmik, another former state TMC president, joined the BJP.

This is a setback to the party, which is already weakened in the state. The current party president Pijush Kanti Bishwas, a former state Congress president, and his son Pujan Biswas, the party’s young face and state general secretary, haven’t been able to expand the party’s organisation in the state. After the assembly elections, the party has almost been inactive in the state.

The national leadership of TMC thinks that its Bengali identity would help the party to expand its base in Tripura, another Bengali majoritarian state, but it fails to understand that the politics of this northeastern state isn’t that similar to West Bengal, as assumed by many. In fact, the party being a West Bengal-based one is coming in the way to its expansion in this northeastern state. Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee can keep coming to the state and create hype in the media but without a credible state leadership, it is very difficult for the party to expand. The desertions of the top leadership — from Subal Bhowmik to Ashish Lal Singh — underline what is completely wrong with the party in this northeastern state. 

The author is a political commentator. 

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