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Campaign blues and gestures

IFP Editorial: In Manipur, BJP leaders are talking about free rice distribution as a boon given by the Narendra Modi government. This is quite insulting to the people of Manipur.

ByIFP Bureau

Updated 22 Feb 2022, 8:08 pm

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There seems to be something wrong with the BJP campaign this year. While it should be talking more about its achievements in furthering the reach of governance in far flung corners of the state through the mission ‘Go to Village’ and the return of a relative peace and harmony in the state and a spurt in connectivity infrastructure, its campaign leaders continue to harp on extension of Inner Line Permit, free rice during the pandemic and naming of Mount Harriet as Mount Manipur besides remembering the days of fake encounters and multi-crore corruption scams during the 15-year-old Congress regime.

Raising hell over the negative aspects of an incumbent regime and finding faults on different issues during the 2017 assembly elections by BJP was understood in a way, although we have reservations over negative campaigns. But, banking on the same negative campaign against the Congress after being in power for five years is not something to be desired. BJP as it successfully completes a full term with coalition partners should be banking more on its positive aspects. Yes, it has not been an easy term to manage for the Chief Minister N Biren Singh with internal dissent and the push and pulls of coalition demands consuming up most of its time and energy, again jeopardised by the pandemic. Yet, he managed somehow to undertake missions like Go to Hills, Go to Village and Chief Minister gi Hakshel gi Tengbang (CMHT) besides a host of other welfare schemes.

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In its 2022 manifesto, BJP chose to skirt the improvement of law and order situation in the state which would certainly provoke the issue of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act and demand for its renewed repeal in the aftermath of the Nagaland Oting ambush. For the present, the demand for repeal for AFSPA is a very sensitive issue and it is well known that most of the BJP CMs in the Northeast are non-committal on it while citing security considerations. CM N Biren Singh was vociferously against AFSPA during his Congress days and he along with some of his colleagues forced the then CM Okram Ibobi Singh to withdraw AFSPA from the Imphal Municipal area. Now that he is a Chief Minister, he is trying to avoid the issue. With regard to the oft-quoted ILP and Mount Harriet issue, we would rather say it is only symbolic. The Inner Line Permit System had been extended in Manipur only for the purpose of silencing the voices of protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in Manipur and every thinking person knows it. On the other hand, the rules and regulations in relation to ILP as demanded by JCILPS had been put in the backburner and still immigrants enter Manipur and roam in the streets of Imphal and the rest of the state with or without the permit freely.

Another oft-quoted issue is about the distribution of free rice during the pandemic by the Narendra Modi-led government. The restrictions caused by the onslaught of the pandemic and the lockdowns had led to massive unemployment and disturbances in the agriculture sector thereby inducing food scarcity. The sudden lockdown in the first wave of the pandemic had caused many to walk miles and kilometres towards home with no prospect of food or employment and it was but natural for the government to usher in free distribution of food so that its citizens do not go hungry. It was the duty and responsibility of the government to help and aid people in distress. But here in Manipur, BJP leaders are talking about free rice distribution as a boon given by the Narendra Modi government. This is quite insulting to the people of Manipur.

The people of Manipur are very particular when it comes to filling their stomachs and they are accustomed to begging for free food. They want to earn it. The farmers of Manipur are up in arms as the price of paddy and local rice is plummeting to a record low because of the free rice distributed during the pandemic. The spill-over effect of free rice distribution is threatening the means of livelihood for the poor farmer.

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- EDITORIAL

 

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Tags:

N Biren SinghAFSPAILPCitizenship Amendment ActBJP campaignManipur polls 2022BJP manifestoDisturbed Area ActBJP cm

IFP Bureau

IFP Bureau

IMPHAL, Manipur

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