In Manipur, who really holds the reins? The fact that a chief minister in office writes to his state's governor requesting that the CM be given back control of the Unified Command is rather astounding from a constitutional perspective.

Manipur news, Manipur demonstrations, and Manipur violence Indian express, Indian express India news, Indian express India, N Biren Singh, Manipur government, Manipur deaths, Manipur violence deaths, India news, Indian express India

Who is the real boss in Manipur? The fact that a chief minister in office writes the governor of his state to request that the CM be granted back control of the Unified Command is very surprising from a constitutional standpoint.

It is astounding that the republic of India has allowed the war in Manipur to worsen and spread for almost 17 months. The contentious court ruling in March 2023 that suggested adding Meiteis to the list of Scheduled Tribes was the direct source of the dispute. Following the incident, almost 60,000 individuals.

Chief Minister Biren Singh bears a great deal of responsibility for the current crisis. His demand that the NRC be implemented with a base year of 1961 is a recipe for disaster. It fits in with the broader use of the NRC template that the BJP is perfecting in the Northeast. But the governance structure in Manipur seems curiously anomalous. There is formally no President’s Rule, but Unified Command was given to officials apparently not answerable to the CM. Who are they answering to? Much of the protests in Manipur are directed against the security advisor. There has been confusion over practically everything, including the status of the Suspension of Operations Agreement. Article 355 was apparently, for weeks, secretly brought into force. This little episode tells you something about the governance dead-end that is Manipur. In normal circumstances, any state with this level of unrest might have been a plausible candidate for President’s Rule. But we have a bizarre situation where the Centre is already running things without claiming to. In effect, therefore, President’s Rule will be the rule of the same incompetence that we have now. So, the puzzle is not just BJP’s ideology. It is that the BJP cannot as much as create a simple chain of command that its own party can align with. The curious puzzle is whether this is weaponised incompetence, deliberate use of confusion in governance, or just plain incompetence?

Meanwhile, the situation on the ground is deteriorating unimaginably. At least judging by the English language Manipuri press and informed observers, the ethnic lines are hardening, not softening. The three cardinal mistakes of policy are being repeated. We know that any situation that is presented as a zero-sum conflict between unified ethnic groups, whether over land, jobs or political dominance, never ends well. Excessive securitisation of what are essentially political conflicts is a recipe for more violence and oppression. Civil society discourse where ethnic groups like Kukis and Meiteis, often with encouragement of the state, are dehumanising each other, exacerbates conflict. Manipuri civil society has been quite vocal in its protest against the government. But whether it now has the resilience to withstand the hardening of ethnic lines is very much an open question.

Two people have been taken into custody by the Manipur Police in relation to the current demonstrations in the Thoubal district. In separate operations, weapons were found, and the state as a whole has enforced stringent security protocols.

The Manipur Police arrested two individuals for suspected involvement in the ongoing protests at Thoubal district.

Acting on specific inputs, the police personnel on September 11 made the arrests from the southern side of Sanjenthong under Porompat PS, Imphal East District.

The individuals have been identified as Laishram Roshan Singh (26), a resident of Khangabok Tangkha Leikai and Moirangthem Bumbum Singh (21) of Khangabok Meisnam Leikai.

A live tear gas shell was also recovered from the accused.

In another operation, the police during a search operation and area domination exercise in the fringe and vulnerable areas of hill and valley districts in Churachandpur district's Shejang recovered one rocket 7.5 feet, one modified M-16 rifle, one large size country made mortar, ome medium size country made mortar, three medium bomb launcher, four bomb launcher, three bombs country made mortar.

Similarly, the personnel also ensured the movement of 262 and 95 vehicles along NH-37 and NH-2 respectively with essential items.

To ensure that cars may move freely and safely, tight security measures have also been implemented in all areas that are susceptible, and security convoys have been supplied in key areas.

A total of 110 nakas, or checkpoints, were set up throughout the state of Manipur in both the hill and valley districts. Five people were also taken into custody by the police in relation to infractions that occurred in various areas of the state.