It is not like the Meitei community is stopping the Kuki-Zo community from honouring or burying their dead as made out to be by the apologists of ‘oppressed’ community in social media and the international media, but it is the site where the Kuki-Zo community is proposing to conduct the mass burial of the 35 dead bodies which the Meiteis are objecting to sternly. The site near Torbung village lies within the compound of state Sericulture department’s Technical Service Centre and Mulberry Farm.
The proposed site falls clearly under Torbung Gram Panchayat and under village No 98-Torbung, Kumbi Circle, Bishnupur district. In short, it is in the Meitei settlement area which the Kuki-Zo community had earmarked for land-grabbing for a long time besides several other areas in the peripheral regions of the valley near the foothills.
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Yes, land-grabbing is one of the basic objectives of present onslaught launched by the ‘oppressed’ Kuki-Zo community since May 3 besides a longing for free rein in the hills ranges to either cultivate poppy or raise settlements and establish new villages, bring in their kith and kin from across the border to build up strength and numbers.
Torbung is the place where it all began and their first objective, under the guise of protests against ST demand by the Meiteis, was to drive away the Meitei community settled in the area and establish their writ or mark their territory.
The protests against the High Court order regarding ST status for the Meiteis was just an excuse for a conspiracy and political objective hatched by the Kuki-Zo elite and power brokers based in Churachandpur and Kangpokpi and elsewhere, as could be deduced easily by the nature of the peaceful rallies against the ST demand in the Naga dominated areas under the banner of the All Tribal Students’ Union (ATSUM).
The rallyists in Churachandpur backed by AK wielding militants in fatigues marched up to Torbung Bangla and kick-started the mayhem by blaming the Meiteis of desecrating a nearby ceremonial gate.
After clearing the Torbung area of original Meitei inhabitants, they want to install a memorial site of the martyrs who died in the present conflict by conducting a mass burial there. They have another objective here besides land-grabbing that is of re-igniting the tension and ethnic strife for another spell.
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The tense situation had reached its climax with the viral video of sexual assault and had saturated to some level with the war being fought in the social media instead of physical confrontation. Now, the situation in Manipur has reached the Supreme Court and the opposition alliance is building up pressure in Parliament to exact their pound of flesh from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh.
Tension in Imphal and the valley area had more or less normalised with more hours of curfew relaxation, while farmers have begun devoting their time to agriculture work besides activities aimed at healing the wounds inflicted by the conflict.
The relentless efforts of the state Governor and other well-meaning citizens besides peace workers had begun to bear fruit. It is at such a juncture that the Kuki-Zo power brokers chose to commemorate the 90-day anniversary and bury the dead.
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Well, it is their choice. But it should not become a factor for re-igniting fresh tension and mayhem. Demonising the ‘majority Meitei oppressors’ has had its day in the sun and it has begun unwinding on its own.
The yarn of ‘victimhood’ and oppression by the Meiteis had taken its toll and people have grown tired of its repeat performance again and again. In early May also, they could have continued their fight in the court and not in the streets.
Now, the matter is being actively discussed in the apex court and they should be optimistic of the results.
However, just as the Union Home Ministry sought time to settle the issue of mass burial they are being obstinate about the site of the mass burial and a fresh demand of adding the unclaimed bodies lying in Imphal.
Why couldn’t they go to the court for this also? Why do they want everything served on a platter?
Read More: IFP EDITORIAL
