Manipur MP Angomcha Bimol Akoijam slams BJP over "absence of rule of law"
Imphal: Manipur Congress leader and Lok Sabha MP Angomcha Bimol Akoijam reiterated his criticism of the BJP-led governments at the Centre and in the state, stating, "There is a complete absence of rule of law in the state."
Coming down heavily on the BJP government, Bimol said that the double standards of the Government of India led to the crisis.
The unrest claimed the lives of over 260 individuals and displaced more than 60,000 people in Manipur.
He was speaking at a political conference held on Sunday under the theme "Women in Politics, Save the Constitution, Save Democracy, Save Manipur" at Sagolband Ingudam Leikai, Imphal.
The central security forces recently prevented the MP from crossing a buffer zone between the districts of Bishnupur and Churachandpur, despite the government announcing that no buffer zone existed.
However, the Kuki-Zo people and their outfits have been persistently advocating for the maintenance of a buffer zone within Manipur, restricting the free movement of the Meitei people.
In this connection, Bimol recently filed a Right to Information (RTI) application with the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), seeking official clarification on the existence, legal validity, and statutory basis of any buffer zones in Manipur.
In the RTI petition, the MP sought to ascertain whether any buffer zones have been formally declared in the state. He likened the confinement of the Meiteis to “fish in a pot” within the valley districts.
He also questioned why law enforcers failed to intervene when ethnic clashes erupted in areas like Moreh and Churachandpur, where the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) applies.
He said that when the crisis initially unfolded on May 3, 2023, it escalated despite a significant presence of both central and state security forces in Manipur.
Bimol accused the government of adopting double standards that led to the crisis. He lamented that if the government had intervened at the early stages, it could have prevented or at least mitigated the situation.