Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, July 29: A 21-member opposition delegation representing 16 parties, all members of the INDIA alliance, reached Imphal on Saturday on a two-day visit to the trouble-torn Manipur even as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) took over the investigations of some of the sexual assault cases in the state.
A video clip of women being stripped and paraded by a mob in violence hit Manipur had surfaced on social media on July 19. More than two months after the incident, police said they had registered a case of gang-rape and abduction. So far, seven people have been arrested in connection horrific incident that had around national outrage and even international condemnation.
It is among the first cases of sexual violence to be reported and which is being followed up with police action after the clashes in the State started on May 3. The CBI is already probing six cases related to violence in Manipur.
A CBI official had said on Friday that the agency so far had not made any arrest so far relating to the violence in the State. Denying reports in a section of the media about 10 arrests, the official said no such action had been taken by the agency yet and that the investigation was still under way. “Also, we have not taken into our custody anyone arrested by the State Police so far,” the official said.
The team of the opposition bloc INDIA visited the riot-hit town of Churachandpur where they met Kuki leaders and members of the civil society besides ethnic strife victims in the relief camps where they were lodged. Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury told reporters after visiting the relief camp, “They are talking of investigation by CBI (into the crimes committed)… I would like to ask were they (central government) sleeping till now?”
TMC leader Sushmita Dev said the team will speak with representatives of both the communities. “Everyone’s voice must be heard. We will be talking to both Kukis and Meiteis,” she said.
Another team, comprising Congress’ deputy leader in Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi and others, went to a relief camp at Don Bosco School in Churachandpur. “We are here to spread the message of peace,” Mr. Gogoi said. After returning to Imphal, the team led by Chowdhury visited a relief camp at Moirang College in Bishnupur district by road to meet victims from the Meitei community.
The other team of opposition MPs visited the Ideal Girl’s College relief camp at Akampat in Imphal East district and will visit another camp at Lamboikhongangkhong in Imphal West. On Sunday morning, the delegation of opposition MPs will meet Governor Anusuiya Uikey at Raj Bhawan to discuss the ongoing situation and possible measures to bring peace in Manipur at the earliest.
The team is scheduled to return to the national capital on Sunday afternoon. Ahead of the visit, Gogoi had, in Delhi, called for an inquiry led by a retired Supreme Court judge into the ongoing ethnic clashes between the two communities in Manipur.
Besides Chowdhury and Gogoi, the delegation included TMC’s Sushmita Dev, JMM’s Mahua Maji, DMK’s Kanimozhi, Jayant Chaudhary of RLD, Manoj Kumar Jha of RJD, N K Premachandran of RSP, JD(U) chief Rajiv Ranjan (Lalan) Singh, Aneel Prasad Hegde (JD-U), CPI’s P Sandosh Kumar and CPI(M)‘s A A Rahim among others.
Sources said the Opposition bloc had written to Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh, who allowed the delegation to visit the State. The MPs have sought to use helicopters in Manipur to visit the far-flung areas of Churachandpur, where fresh violence has taken place.
More than 160 people lost their lives and many people were injured since ethnic clashes broke out in Manipur on May 3, after a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status. Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur’s population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley. Tribals — Nagas and Kukis — constitute another 40 per cent of the population and reside in the hill districts.
The Governor of Manipur also visited some relief camps in Churachandpur district. She met the inhabitants and distributed sweets for the children and some money. She assured the aggrieved women and children that she was talking with community leaders to find a solution.
Earlier on Saturday, the National Crime Records Bureau began collecting biometric data from persons from Myanmar who recently entered Manipur illegally. Officials said the data collection is expected to be completed by September.
Meanwhile, police sources said there have been heavy exchanges of fire between Kuki militants, the armed forces, and village protection guards in villages along Bishnupur and Churachandpur districts. Personnel of the State police, India Reserve Battalion, and the Manipur Rifles were despatched to Moreh on Friday. However, they found themselves stranded as the highway in Tengnoupal district was blocked by Kuki women.
The BJP has slammed the Opposition MPs and reiterated the alleged crimes against women in Rajasthan and West Bengal. “This is just optics. When this I.N.D.I.A. returns from Manipur, I want to ask Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury if he supports the crimes against women in his state West Bengal. Will these 20 MPs of I.N.D.I.A. (front) give reports on Rajasthan and West Bengal as well,” asked Union Minister Anurag Thakur.
Congress Gaurav Gogoi said they would put forth the “truth” before Parliament. “The government has failed, so we want to go there and see what solution can be found,” said Trinamool’s Sushmita Dev. RJD’s Manoj Jha said “Manipur needs to be heard” and they were “trying to listen to the people of Manipur and understand their situation.” The Manipur issue has led to a parliament logjam since the Monsoon Session convened this month, with the Opposition MPs demanding a long discussion on it as well as a statement from the Prime Minister in parliament. But the centre has insisted that Home Minister Amit Shah will respond to the Opposition.
The Opposition delegation’s visit to Manipur comes exactly a month after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi visited the state on June 29-30. On the first day of his visit, his convoy was stopped and he flew in a helicopter to the violence-hit Churachandpur district from state capital Imphal.
The government of Chief Minister N Biren Singh, who has thus far refused to give in to demands of resignation, has decided to convene an assembly session at the end of this month or early August.
With thousands displaced since the violence began on May 3, many families have send their children to schools outside Manipur to ensure that their academic career were not disturbed. Official sources said in Delhi alone at least 138 children from Manipur have been admitted to schools since the May 3 violence and 290 applications were still pending.