The World Meetei Council (WMC) has resented the Manipur government for allegedly disrupting a press conference organised at the Manipur Press Club on Tuesday.
In a press release, WMC CEC secretary seneral Yambem Arun Meetei condemned the detention of WMC functionaries allegedly by the Manipur Police when they reached the Press Club and stated that the council was prevented from addressing the press.
Such an action is a clear violation of Article 19 of the Constitution which guarantees freedom of speech and expression, it asserted. It expressed discontentment towards the conduct of the state government, allegedly attempting to silence their voice and termed it as unacceptable.
The council also condemned the alleged attempt by some individuals impersonating as WMC to divert the public’s attention from the ST demand movement, undermining the credibility of WMC. They do not know that WMC and GMF (Global Meetei Foundation) are independent bodies/organizations, it maintained.
It stated that during the General Conference held at Binakandi, Assam on February 17, Heigrujam Nabashyam was re-elected as chairman for the period 2024-27 and will remain the chairman of WMC until the next election in 2027 when a new chairman will be elected. It mentioned that according to the Constitution of WMC, the chairman cannot be removed from office.
It noted that on March 26, H Nabashyam announced his resignation from chairman of WMC, however the CEC decided that he could take a short leave instead, with KN Chand, the vice chairman, being appointed as chairman in charge upon his own recommendation.
As such, vice-chairman Col Gokul Singha addressed his resignation letter dated April 10 to Nabashyam, it said. It added that his resignation was accepted by the chairman and asserted that Col Gokul Chandra Singha does not have the authority to speak on behalf of WMC, as he resigned from WMC and is neither a member, nor was he readmitted.
It further went on to say that during the special WMC meeting held on April 14 Chairman, Nabashyam resumed active participation due to the lack of proper functioning of WMC during his leave of absence.
During this time, the president of WMC Assam Unit, Nabakishore Singh and general secretary Hari Singh allegedly organized a secret meeting at Lamargram, Cachar to remove chairman Nabashyam, secretary general Yambem Arun Meetei, and assistant secretary general Sarat Thangjam from their official positions, it stated.
It further stated that in the meet, Nabakishore Singh, Sanjiv Singh, KN Chand Singh, Hari Singh and Gunadhon Singh allegedly removed the ADMIN rights of all the states’ unit leaders of India in the official WMC WhatsApp group and hijacked the virtual office (WhatsApp group) of WMC and still continue to do so. Following which, President of the Assam Unit, Nabakishore and General Secretary Hari Singha were expelled from WMC on April 23, it noted.
However, on May 30, the expelled members announced on social media platforms that Col Gokul Chandra Singha was the new WMC Chairman. It condemned the attempt to interfere with the work done by WMC does by hijacking the leadership and asserted that the same has caused confusion amongst all the state units and not just the WMC Manipur unit.
It lamented that such an event is being orchestrated during such a critical time for the Meeteis. It also highlighted the meeting between CM and WMC during the flood crisis on May 31, which was published on social media. It expressed shock over the same stating that WMC had not been granted an appointment to meet with the CM for more than 18 months.
It urged to immediately halt the unfortunate chain of events allegedly orchestrated by the Manipur government in collaboration with the impersonators and further warned to initiate legal proceedings against them. It also appealed to the media not to give undue attention to the hijackers and their actions and also urged the people of Barak to counsel these individuals not to stand against the Meetei community.
