A few days have passed since a video showing three Kuki women being paraded naked, abused and harassed surfaced on social media on July 19, 2023. While the Union government is yet address the issue of ongoing violence taking place in Manipur in the current Monsoon session of the Parliament, the of the opposition parties, civil and human rights organisations and citizenry are far from dying out.
Since May 3, the state of Manipur has been witnessing ethnic “clashes” between the majority Meitei community, concentrated in the Imphal valley, and the tribal Kukis, occupying the hills. Reportedly, may people have lost their lives, and over 40,000 people, including children, have been displaced in Manipur and are staying in makeshift camps.
A fact finding team also termed the said as “state sponsored violence”. Ever since the video of a group of miscreants in Manipur paraded two Kuki women in a very barbaric and inhuman manner surfaced online, the incident is no longer limited within the boundaries of the country but now has reached every house in India, and even the international level. This has led to a lot of condemnation at the every level, while the government at the Centre has maintained their silence, and even resorted to ‘whataboutism’.
Today, thousands of women and men have taken to the streets condemning the heinous incident in Manipur and demanded the resignation of the Chief Minister of Manipur. Demands of a separate administrative system for the Kuki-Zo community in Manipur have also been raised.
The opposition parties are also protesting against the continuous silence maintained by the higher-ups, especially the President and Prime Minister of India, regarding the said incidents. In the ongoing Monsoon session of the parliament, the newly-formed Opposition group has been asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi to give a statement on the issue of over two-month-long ethnic violence in Manipur.
Protesting citizens keep the pressure on, demands accountability
Uttar Pradesh:
On July 26, people associated with United Women’s Forum, Civil Rights Forum, and other allied organizations participated in the demonstration in the District Collectorate, Saharanpur. At the protest site, women raised their voice and conducted the program, showing their collective strength and solidarity for those having suffering/suffering through violence of any kind in Manipur. At the protest, the attendees were made aware about Manipur in detail and the plight of the people of Manipur. The protest then reached the collectorate office, where slogans where raised by making a human chain. A memorandum addressed to the President was handed over to the district officer by the protesters.
Assam:
On July 24, a sit-in-protest by Kuki-Zomi-Hmar organisation was held in the hilly district of Dima Hasao, Assam over the prevailing Manipur crisis. The protest was held at the Mahur playground led by the Kuki Students Organization, Hmar Women’s Association and the Kuki Women’s Association. The protesters demanded the resignation of Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh immediately and demanded a probe into all the horrific incidents that have hit the north-eastern state of Manipur.
At the protest site, Sylvius Khojal told the India Today that the Congress, BJP and Trinamool Congress should not to do politics over the Manipur incident. People across the country should condemn this inhuman incident. He said, “We want peace but we know how to fight but don’t force us to take extreme steps”.
Punjab:
On July 22, activists from a number of justice seeking organisations held a protest at Barnala, Bathinda in Punjab. The protesters demanded the sacking of Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh and justice for all those women who were subjected to sexual violence in the state of Manipur, which remains engulfed in violence. The protestors expressed their anger over the indifference shown by the central government, who seems to be least bothered to control the situation. The protesters had assembled and taken out the march under the banner of association for democratic rights (AFDR).
AFDR district Barnala president Gurmail Singh Thuliwal told Times of India that the fascist agenda of the governments is responsible for the sectarian violence in North East state. The organisation raised demands for the resignation of the Chief Minister and immediate end to the violence against the minorities.
Manipur:
On July 21, Hundreds of women gathered in Imphal, the state capital of Manipur in India, to protest the lack of government response after two women were paraded through the streets by a group of men while they were naked on May 4. The men then gang raped the two women. The women voiced their distress about the 78-day delay before the government denounced the horrible crime, which only occurred as a result of a video of the assault recently emerging and spreading popular on social media.
Telangana and Andhra Pradesh:
On July 21, Women’s organisations in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh protested against the attitude of the Union government in response to the horrifying video In Hyderabad, a demonstration was held by civil society groups near Ambedkar Statue at Tank Band. Activists from the Progressive Organisation of Women (POW), Bhumika Women’s Collective, and youth organisations Naujawan Bharat Sabha, and Disha Student Organisation joined the protest. In Andhra Pradesh’s Visakhapatnam, activists from POW, Akhila Bharatha Prajatantra Mahila Sngham (AIDWA), National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW), Human Rights Forum, Mahila Chetana and others also voiced their outrage. The activists raised slogans demanding the Union government immediately take action to stop the violence in Manipur. They urged the government to take responsibility for the ongoing protest and demanded the resignation of the Manipur Chief Minister, Biren Singh.
Activist Sandhya Rani spoke to The News Minute and said, “A genocide is happening in Manipur for the past three months. Meitei people are chasing and assaulting the Kuki tribes. The Modi government has remained mute until two months after the incident and the Prime Minister spoke only after the video went viral. The government should be accountable for the violence.”
“Could the government not have known what was happening? Why did the Union Home Ministry not care or respond? We demand the arrest of the perpetrators of this heinous crime,” said Bhumika Women’s Collective head K Satyavati, as reported by the TNM.
Delhi:
On July 21, scores of people in the national capital staged a demonstration to demand an end to the violence in Manipur and the restoration of peace in the strife-torn north-eastern state Members of various organisations staged the said protest against the ongoing ethnic violence in Manipur. Activists led by the All India Students’ Association and the Krantikari Yuva Sangathan (KYS) gathered at Jantar Mantar for the protest with placards and banners that bore messages such as “CM Biren Singh must resign” and “End violence in Manipur”.
As reported by Deccan Herald, the KYS had also issued a statement saying the following, “KYS condemns the incident in the strongest terms and demands that the Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh should be immediately sacked. Moreover, exemplary punishment must be ensured to the culprits, and the police officials who failed to act even after two months of the FIR being filed should be immediately sacked.”
‘INDIA’ refuses to stay mum, refuse to forget Manipur
Since the beginning of the monsoon parliament session, the opposition-front Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance ‘INDIA’ has been demanding PM Modi’s statement on Manipur violence in Parliament through a joint protest. The Lok Sabha witnessed scenes of ruckus as Opposition MPs raised placards and slogans demanding PM Narendra Modi’s statement on the ongoing violent situation. Many leaders have submitted adjournment notices demanding a full-fledged discussion on the matter.
Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge had told journalists at the protest site that they were requesting both Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha presiding officers to urge Modi to come and make a statement on what is the real situation. “The PM [Prime Minister] does not even come to the Parliament chambers and only sits in his office and listens to what is going on. If the PM makes a statement in the Parliament on Manipur, then we can have a discussion,” Hindustan Times reported.
On July 24, members from INDIA had sat in front of Mahatma Gandhi’s statue at Parliament House through the night, reiterating calls for debate on the Manipur crisis.
On July 26, the Aam Aadmi Party organised rallies as a protest to the Central Government’s three-month silence concerning the violence and atrocities being committed against women in Manipur. They accused the ruling administration with failing to act and abusing democracy to muzzle calls for accountability. A demand for President’s rule in Manipur was also made as a result of the state’s own government’s inaction.
In a separate news, on July 22, Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren had written to President Droupadi Murmu, expressing his anguish over the “unspeakable torture” of women in violence-hit Manipur and urged her to take steps to ensure peace in the north-eastern state.
The country cannot let tribals in Manipur be treated in a “barbaric way”, he had said in the letter. “Silence in the face of cruelty is a terrible crime and so I am compelled today to write to you with a heavy heart and profound anguish over the ongoing spate of violence in the state of Manipur,” Mr Soren further said, as reported by the NDTV.
Manipur is “burning for over two months, heart-wrenching videos are surfacing” and there is an “unparalleled breakdown of democratic governance” in the northeastern state, he said in the letter. The Jharkhand Chief Minister also alleged that a desperate attempt was being made by the Union government to “side-line the issue, muzzle the voice of the media”, as provided by the NDTV.
“In this darkest hour of crisis that Manipur and India face, we look up to you as the last source of hope and inspiration who could show the light in these troubled times to the people of Manipur and all citizens of India. As the chief minister of Jharkhand and a concerned citizen of this nation, I am deeply distressed and concerned about the spiralling situation in Manipur, which has already resulted in loss of hundreds of innocent lives, destruction of property and public infrastructure, unspeakable torture and sexual exploitation of women, displacement and a grave sense of insecurity among the several ethnic groups residing in the affected areas,” Mr Soren further said.
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