Manipur king on indefinite fast as govt wants his palace

According to Manipuri lore,the king is a direct descendent of Pakhangba,or the Serpent King,who is considered the king of the universe. The palace is a temple and the king is a direct descendent of God. He is therefore considered a God in Manipur. The government wanting to dislocate him is like taking a deity out of a temple. How can this be acceptable to Manipuris? Its like asking the President of India to leave Rashtrapati Bhawan. Without its deity,the temple is meaningless, said Puyam Tomcha,the royal councillor advocate to the king.

According to Tomcha,the state government had earlier signed a memorandum of understanding with the king stating that it would not infringe on his rights to reside in the palace or interfere with his duties as the customary head of Manipur.

The palace compound houses Manipurs main Govindji temple as well as two new modern glass structures the Manipur Film Development Corporation and the Convention Centre. There was a monument called the Purreilomba bungalow where the Convention Centre now stands. It belonged to the king. It was demolished overnight by the government, said Tomcha.

He added that this time too,Ningthou was not consulted about the decision to acquire the royal palace.

According to the merger agreement between the Government of India and the King of Manipur dated September 21,1949,the Maharaja of Manipur cedes to the dominant government full and exclusive authority,jurisdiction and power for and in relation to the governance of the state and agrees to transfer administration of the state to the dominant government on October 15,1949.