Manipur government hits back: Urges Mizoram CM to foster harmony, not hatred
- In Reports
- 11:25 AM, Nov 30, 2024
- Myind Staff
On Friday evening, the Manipur government criticised Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma, urging him to be a "good neighbour" and demonstrate "better statesmanship" instead of igniting "hatred and division" with "unwarranted comments."
The state government expounded in a statement that India should be cautious of the "greater agenda of carving a Kuki-Chin Christian nation" that has been planned over decades and involves contiguous parts of Bangladesh, India, and Myanmar. It declared that "secessionist interests as openly espoused by the Mizoram CM" or foreign vested interests would not be permitted to separate Northeast India. "Mizoram CM reveals his democratic credentials by espousing imposition of President's Rule in Manipur while opposing boundary fencing of the Indo-Myanmar international border. He also calls for the reunification of the Zo people. He also talks about the possibility of armed militias in Manipur pointing their guns at Delhi and the need for disarming, and sincere negotiations with hill leaders," it said.
The Manipur government issued its statement after Lalduhoma, in an interview with the Hindustan Times, criticised N Biren Singh, calling him a burden on the state, its people, and the BJP. He also suggested that the President's Rule would be better than his administration. "He further questions the use of border fencing saying smuggling of guns, weapons and drugs could not be stopped along Indo-Bangladesh border despite the existence of border fence," the statement said. "The Mizoram Government has been steadfast in opposing the efforts of the centre to fence its open borders with neighbouring Myanmar for the purpose of curbing illegal immigration, trafficking of arms and drugs, internal security and defence," it added.
The Manipur government claimed that illegal immigrants from Myanmar, whose economy was heavily impacted by the illegal poppy trade under CM Singh's "War on Drugs," were to blame for the state's current crisis. "It is not on account of any anti-tribal policy of the State Government, as has been falsely portrayed by the Mizoram CM through fabricated narratives and history," it said. "The Mizoram CM must note that Manipur has a recorded history and a rich culture going back thousands of years unlike Mizoram which was carved out of the State of Assam only a few decades ago," it added. According to the statement, Lalduhoma was "apparently unable to fathom" the causes of the unusual rise in the number of villages in the hill districts that are either heavily populated by Kuki people or are dominated by them.
The Mizoram government previously instructed Myanmar nationals not to buy land or run businesses without prior approval, addressing concerns about pressure on land, livelihoods, and resources. Since 2017, the Manipur government has seized or destroyed drugs worth ₹60,000 crore as part of its 'War on Drugs' initiative. "On account of efforts of State Government and assistance of Central government agencies, the transit of drugs within the State of Manipur has come down to almost nil currently. On the other hand, Mizoram has now emerged as the favoured route for international transit of illegal arms, ammunition and drugs between India and Myanmar," it said. "The Mizoram CM may like to focus on the looming threat on Mizo society from the drugs trade instead of passing unwarranted comments on legally justified acts of the Government of Manipur to combat drugs trafficking by labelling these acts as 'anti-tribal'," it added.
According to the statement, the government led by N Biren Singh was working tirelessly to bring peace and normalcy back to the state. "The government has been providing food, clothing and shelter to over 60,000 persons staying in relief camps across the State. Combing operations to recover arms and ammunition looted from police armouries continue to be undertaken with success," it said. "India must be wary of the greater agenda of carving a Kuki-Chin Christian nation out of contiguous areas of Myanmar, India and Bangladesh, played out over decades of meticulous planning, through illegal immigration, land grabbing, displacement of original indigenous peoples, formation of Kuki-Chin dominated districts, establishment of Autonomous District Councils, upgradation of such Councils to Scheduled Areas, amalgamation of Kuki-Chin areas and finally Nationhood," it added.
According to the statement, any attempt to "push" illegal Kuki-Chin immigrants from Mizoram to Manipur in order to seize property and create "Greater Mizoram" should also be avoided. "The Government of Manipur will not allow fragmentation of North East India at the behest of foreign vested interests, or such secessionist interests as openly espoused by the Mizoram CM. Any individual, group or organisation working with such intent shall be met with the strong hands of the law. The Mizoram CM can display better statesmanship by being a good neighbour rather than stoke the fire of hatred and division," it added. The Mizoram government was unavailable for comment on the statement at the time.
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