News Analysis India

Tag: Manipur

  • Rajnath calls on Manipur militants to shun violence, come for peace talks

    By PTI

    IMPHAL: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has called on insurgent outfits in Manipur to shun violence and come for peace talks with the Centre.

    Speaking at a programme at Langthabal in Imphal West district on Monday, Singh said that the Union government is ready for dialogue with the insurgent groups if they wish to return to the mainstream.

    “We are ready for talks with militants. Violence in Manipur has been the lowest in the last five years. Insurgency has reduced drastically. The BJP will put an end to violence and bring lasting peace and development in the region,” he said.

    Singh said that the Centre is committed to resolving unemployment, poverty and other issues plaguing Manipur for years, and boost tourism to increase the state’s revenues.

    The defence minister exuded confidence that the BJP will win an absolute majority in the upcoming assembly elections in Manipur.

    He said that Northeast lags behind other parts of the country in terms of development due to “anti-people” policies of the previous Congress governments.

    “The Congress had neglected the region, and its anti-development policies reflect its anti-Northeast sentiment. After becoming PM, Atal Behari Vajpayee had formed a separate ministry for the development of the region. However, after his government was defeated in 2004, the region was continuously neglected for the next 10 years.”

    “However, Manipur has witnessed speedy development since the BJP came to power in the state in 2017. Five years back, the state was engulfed by violence, which has now ended. People of the state have witnessed development and good governance under the BJP,” he added.

  • Manipur Polls 2022: Congress releases 2nd list of 10 candidates

    By PTI

    IMPHAL: The Congress on Tuesday released its second list of 10 candidates for the upcoming Manipur assembly election.

    Former minister Ningthoujam Biren Singh and legislator Pukhrem Sharatchandra Singh are among the nominees featured in the second list.

    The party had on January 22 released the first list of 40 candidates with former chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh contesting from Thoubal assembly seat.

    Election to the 60-member Manipur assembly will be held in two phases on February 27 and March 3. The result will be declared on March 10.

  • Former Manipur cop Brinda to contest polls on JD-U’s ticket

    By Express News Service

    GUWAHATI: Former decorated cop Thounaojam Brinda will contest the Manipur elections on the ticket of Janata Dal (United).

    After she had joined the party on Sunday, it was decided to field her from the Yaiskul constituency in the Imphal valley. 

    Brinda told this newspaper that she believed JD-U was a good choice. “I took into consideration the local conditions. People wanted me to contest from a party that is a partner of the ruling party (BJP),” she said.

    She said she could have contested from the Congress but it did not have a bright prospect. She will be up against sitting MLA Thokchom Satyabrata Singh of the BJP among others.

    BJP leader Thangjam Arunkumar, who resigned from the party after being denied a ticket, also joined the JD-U.

  • Protests erupt in Manipur after BJP announces candidates’ names

    By Express News Service

    GUWAHATI: Protestors torched BJP flags, posters and allegedly forced the closure of its offices in some parts of Manipur on Sunday after their leaders were denied party tickets.

    The incidents were reported from a few constituencies, including Kakching and Sagolband. Protests were also staged in the state capital of Imphal. However, there were no violent incidents. Apprehending trouble, the authorities had tightened security across constituencies in the Imphal valley. 

    The BJP’s Manipur election in-charge Bhupender Yadav claimed members with a long association with the party had been fielded while two sitting MLAs were denied tickets. 

    A large number of police commandos and personnel from central paramilitary forces have remained deployed at the party’s head office for about a week while the security of partys’ state president A Sharda Devi, ministers and MLAs were also tightened.

    As immediate fallout, an aspirant at the Wangkhei seat, Thangjam Arunkumar, resigned from the party. Opposition Congress and National People’s Party said several BJP leaders, who missed the bus, were likely to contest the polls on their tickets.

    After declaring the names of all 60 candidates in Delhi, Yadav exuded confidence that the party would retain power with more than a two-thirds majority. In the 2017 polls, the party had won 21 seats against Congress’ 28 but managed to cobble up the numbers to form the government.

    However, the list has the names of over a dozen who had won the last election contesting from the Congress and other parties and later, defected to the BJP.

    Three retired IAS officers – Dinganglung Gangmei, Yengkhom Surchandra and Raghumani Singh and three women – Soraisam Kebi Devi, SS Olish and Nemcha Kipgen – are among the BJP candidates.

    Chief Minister N Biren Singh will contest from his pet Heingang seat, Assembly Speaker Yumnam Khemchand from Singjamei and senior minister Thongam Biswajit from Thongju. The two-phase polls will be held on February 27 and March 3.

  • PM Narendra Modi pitches for ‘double engine’ development in Manipur

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted on Friday that impediments to Manipur’s progress have been removed and its development has started at a fast pace, as he asked its people to not allow the forces that kept it down for 70 years to rear their head again.

    Greeting the people of the poll-bound state on Manipur statehood day, Modi said in a speech that the state deserves peace and also deserves to be ridden of frequent bandhs and blockades, and added that it has been achieved under the leadership of Chief Minister N Biren Singh.

    The BJP is in power in the state.

    The prime minister said the government is committed to making Manipur the sports powerhouse of the country, and it has a key role in the vision of making the North-East the centre of its Act East policy.

    Obstacles in the growth journey of the state have been removed and next 25 years are the “Amrit Kaal” (golden era) of Manipur’s development, he said.

    He highlighted his continuous efforts to get a first-hand account of expectations and aspirations of the people of the state, and said this enabled him to get a better understanding of their feelings and expectation and find ways to tackle their problems.

    The prime minister said under the ‘double-engine’ of development, a reference to the BJP being in the power at the state as well as the Centre, Manipur is getting long awaited facilities like railways.

    Connectivity projects worth thousands of crores rupees are underway in the state, including Jiribam-Tupul-Imphal railway line.

    Similarly, with Imphal airport getting international status, connectivity of North-Eastern states with Delhi, Kolkata and Bengaluru has improved.

    Manipur will also benefit from the India-Myanmar-Thailand trilateral highway and upcoming Rs 9000 crore natural gas pipeline in the region, he said.

    Assembly polls will be held in Manipur on February 27 and March 3.

  • Manipur Congress Vice President Chaltonlien Amo switches to BJP

    By PTI

    IMPHAL: In a blow to the Congress, its vice president for Manipur and MLA, Chaltonlien Amo switched over to the ruling BJP, on Sunday a day after elections to the state assembly were announced.

    Amo joined the BJP at a small ceremony at its office in Imphal in the presence of Union Minister of Labour and Employment Bhupedra Yadav, who is also the party in-charge of Manipur, Chief Minister N Biren Singh and BJP Manipur president A Sharda Devi.

    Since elections to the state assembly in the 2017 when Congress won 28 seats in a house 60, the grand old party has been beset with desertions depleted its strength in the house.

    Amo has since been suspended from Indian National Congress with immediate effect, a party statement issued Sunday evening said.

    A statement issued by Manipur Pradesh Congress Committee sid “on the recommendation of Disciplinary Action Committee, MPCC, the president, MPCC, is pleased to suspend Dr. Chaltolien Amo from the Indian National Congress under the Constitution of Indian National Congress.”

  • EC to hold virtual meet with Manipur administration, political parties on Wednesday

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Election Commission will hold a virtual meeting with top officials and representatives of political parties from Manipur on Wednesday, sources said.

    Manipur is one of the five states where assembly elections are due and the virtual meet is part of the poll panel’s exercise to take stock of the situation.

    The commission has already visited Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa and Uttarakhand in the last few days to take stock of the poll preparedness there.

    Top state administration officials, representatives of political parties and those part of the poll machinery will attend separate meetings on Wednesday evening, sources said.

    On Tuesday, the commission also took stock of the evolving Covid situation in the five states amid concerns over rising infections caused by the Omicron variant, they said.

    During a meeting with Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan on December 27, the Election Commission noted that the percentage of those administered the first dose of Covid vaccine was still less in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Manipur, while it was nearing 100 per cent in Uttarakhand and Goa.

    While the tenure of the Uttar Pradesh legislative assembly ends in May, the terms of the legislative assemblies of Goa, Manipur and Punjab end on different dates in March.

    The poll panel is likely to announce the election dates for the five states in the first half of this month.

    It has asked the five states to step up the Covid inoculation drive and ensure that the personnel to be deployed on election duty are “double vaccinated”.

    In a recent letter to the chief secretaries of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Manipur and Punjab, the Election Commission has also reminded the five states that polling personnel come under the category of frontline workers and are eligible for the “precaution dose” of the Covid vaccines.

    The commission has said the polling personnel to be deployed in these states should be fully vaccinated and those eligible for the second dose of the vaccines should be administered the jabs on a priority basis, the sources said citing the letter.

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  • Manipur polls: Can Congress upset BJP applecart?

    Express News Service

    GUWAHATI: The Congress is dreaming big about the upcoming Manipur elections but it, surely, will have a mountain to climb to upset the BJP applecart.

    The party is going to polls against the backdrop of a series of defections by its MLAs to the BJP which heads the ruling coalition.

    The PA Sangma-founded National People’s Party (NPP) and the Naga People’s Front (NPF) – a party from Nagaland that has spread its wings to Manipur – are the two other components of the coalition.

    Over the past five years or so, 13 Congress MLAs deserted the party to wear saffron. Switchover by MLAs to the ruling party has been a growing trend in the Northeast where people vote more in favour of individuals than political parties.

    The Congress is also plagued by the absence of vibrant and energetic young leaders. A couple of them that it had are now with the BJP. As such, the seasoned and battle-hardened Okram Ibobi Singh (73) continues to be the party’s Manipur face.

    Only time will tell whether the Congress will be able to give the BJP a run for its money but the general perception is that it will emerge as the second-largest party after the BJP.

    Pradip Phanjoubam, who is the Editor of Imphal Review of Arts and Politics, felt the BJP will have an edge over the Congress.

    “The Congress is campaigning hard but the ruling party, usually, has an edge over others everywhere. I feel the Congress is slightly down,” Phanjoubam told The New Indian Express on Tuesday.

    He thought the Congress would still be able to put up a fight.

    “The Congress has been in power several terms in Manipur. It has some veterans, a lot of who can win. The only thing is that some of them have defected. However, despite the setbacks, it will still be a force to reckon with,” he added.

    Manipur Congress spokesman K Debabrata said the growing popularity of the NPP and the NPF would hurt the BJP more than the Congress.

    “The NPF and the NPP have grown up since. They are likely to bag 10 seats each by cutting into the BJP votes. They will also cause a split of the Congress votes but it will be less,” Debabrata said.

    He claimed the NPP was falling out with Chief Minister N Biren Singh and had already declared that it would not align with the BJP. “There could be a post-poll scenario where the Congress will form the government along with the NPP and the NPF,” he said, adding, “The BJP will get less than 20 seats”.

    In June last year, all four NPP legislators in the state had quit the ministry until returning to the government a few days later following the intervention of BJP stalwart and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

    “We are aiming at getting majority by becoming the single largest party, again,” the Congress spokesman said.

    He admitted there was none more popular than Ibobi in the Congress.

    “We leave the issue of our CM face to the future. Whosoever will command a bigger number of MLAs may become the CM. Our coalition partners may also ask for the CM post,” he said.

    Any party that cannot get along with the BJP will be the Congress’ partner. The Congress is not going for the pre-poll alliance, he added.

    In the 2017 polls, the Congress had won 28 seats as against the BJP’s 21 in the 60-member House but the latter managed to cobble up the numbers to form the government. 

  • Supreme Court sets aside Manipur Speaker’s order disqualifying three MLAs for defection

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court Wednesday set aside an order passed by the Speaker of the Manipur Assembly disqualifying three former Congress MLAs over their alleged defection to BJP.

    A bench headed by Justice U U Lalit asked the Speaker to decide the matter afresh.

    “We allow the appeal, set aside the order of the High Court, and restore the matter pending before the Speaker to be decided afresh without being influenced by earlier orders or the one that was passed by the High Court.

    “Since the order passed by the Speaker has now been set aside, till the matter has been disposed of by the Speaker, the MLA shall continue to represent the electorate in the house of Legislative Assembly,” the bench, also comprising Justices S Ravindra Bhat and Bela M Trivedi, said.

    The apex court had earlier issued notices and sought responses from the office of Assembly Speaker and others on three separate petitions filed by the disqualified MLAs who had challenged the June 2, 2021 verdicts of the high court which had said there was enough material before the Speaker to draw the inference that they had voluntarily given up their membership of Indian National Congress (INC).

    The three MLAs were disqualified by the Speaker on June 18 last year after disqualification petitions were filed alleging that they had voluntarily given up their membership of the INC and given their support to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

    It was also alleged in the disqualification petition that they had participated in political works and programmes hosted by the BJP.

    The top court was hearing three separate petitions filed by Kshetrimayum Biren Singh, Yengkhom Surchandra Singh, and Sanasam Bira Singh who were elected as MLAs as Congress candidates in the March 2017 Assembly election.

    In one of the verdicts passed on the petition filed by Kshetrimayum Biren Singh, the high court had said, “On examining the photographs/videos and newspaper reports filed in connection with the disqualification cases, the existence of which was never denied by the writ petitioner, we are of the considered view that there were enough materials before the Speaker to draw an inference that the writ petitioner had voluntarily given up his membership of the Indian National Congress (INC)”.

    “In view of the ongoing discussion and findings, we are of the opinion that the orders of the Speaker are in accordance with the provisions of Tenth Schedule of the Constitution of India and do not call for any interference by this court in the exercise of the power of judicial review under Article 226 of the Constitution of India.

    The writ petition, therefore, fails and is accordingly dismissed,” the high court had said.

  • In poll-bound Manipur, “is the govt listening?” is Congress’ answer to BJP govt’s “let’s speak with the CM” campaign

    Express News Service

    GUWAHATI: In election-bound Manipur, the Congress party launched “Sarkar Taribra”, a digital platform, to counter the BJP-led government’s “Chief Ministerda Haisi” programme.

    The terminology ‘Sarkar Taribra’ translates to “is the government listening”. The ‘Chief Ministerda Haisi’, launched on October 12 this year, means “let’s speak with the chief minister”.

    The Chief Ministerda Haisi is a platform where the citizens can share their grievances besides views and suggestions on any matter directly to the CM.

    However, the Congress’s Manipur in-charge Bhakta Charan Das alleged instead of addressing the genuine problems of the citizens under the programme, the government was undermining their liberty, rights and freedom. He charged it with silencing the media and threatening the social activists.

    Das said the Chief Ministerda Haisi was launched to try and warm up to the voters given that the Assembly elections are just months away. He asked the government what made it launch the programme just ahead of elections.

    Seeking clarity on several other programmes launched by the government for the benefit of people, state Congress leader K Devbrata said the party would check the effectiveness of the Chief Ministerda Haisi programme through its Sarkar Taribra. He said the party would maintain the privacy of complainants.

    The Congress also launched “INC YouTube Channel” where public grievances will be uploaded and if people are indeed getting the benefits of the Chief Ministerda Haisi programme highlighted.

    A bipolar contest is expected between the BJP and the Congress when the state goes to elections, possibly in February. The BJP is in alliance with regional parties Naga People’s Front and National People’s Party and their partnership is likely to continue.

    In the 2017 polls, the Congress had won 28 of the 60 seats as against the BJP’s 21, yet the saffron party managed to form the government with support from the regional parties after the Congress had failed to cobble up the numbers.

    After many years, Manipur is likely to witness a real contest in the upcoming polls. The previous elections used to be a one-sided affair in the absence of a formidable opposition.

    While the BJP will have to overcome anti-incumbency, the polls will be an acid test for the Congress to regain the lost ground after having ruled the state for most part. The party suffered several setbacks over the past five years when the MLAs, one after another, deserted it to wear saffron.