This is an account of our two-day visit to violence-hit Manipur. During the trip, our memories of the state — with its green paddy fields expanding like undulating carpets and the strong and resilient men and women — were marred with faces filled with suspicion and fear, with images of torched houses and scorched dreams.
We — Hibi Eden, Congress Lok Sabha MP from Kerala’s Ernakulam and Dean Kuriackose, MP from Idukki — visited Manipur earlier this week. We travelled to the state on directions from the Congress leadership, which was keen on getting first-hand information to add to what they have been receiving from hundreds of Keralites, especially Christian priests and nuns working in the trouble-torn region. Unfortunately, we had to hide our identities as MPs and posed as two teachers coming from Kerala. Neither of us revealed our political identity in an attempt to get the real picture and of course, for our safety. In a land where identity and ideology have overshadowed humanity and triggered hatred, violence, bloodshed and death, we had to do so.
We landed in Imphal on June 12. We decided to go to Kangpokpi district and reached there after passing through several rounds of checks by Meitei groups, Kukis, state police, security personnel and the army. To our shock, young Manipuri women, whom one of us (Eden) remembered as a brave and active participant in the political process from the memories of his NSUI days, were also leading the angry groups. Our hearts sank when we were told that some Manipuri women take their children along during violent clashes.
Those check-posts left us wondering whether we were in India, which has a Constitution that guarantees the rule of law and ensures the safety and security of every citizen.
We saw a group of puppets controlled by some people to enact yet another murky script in service of an opaque political plot. Manipur has become a land of senseless aggressors and defenceless victims who live in suspicion of each other, against a background score of gunshots and explosions.
Getting out of the car in front of a relief camp in Kangpokpi village, we were welcomed by children with innocent smiles. Yet, the look in their eyes revealed their anxiety to us. An entire village was at the camp. The attacks in Manipur have displaced whole communities. Hunger, hurt, anger, uncertainty — the faces and voices in the camp told tales of despair. We met many who had lost their houses, built with a lifetime of savings. We listened to the story of a young Economics graduate student whose parents and siblings are missing — he cannot sleep as he worries about them. He wonders if this marks the end of their dreams of him leading a good, respectable life.
Their stories have confirmed our worst fears: Most of the violence appears to be taking place with the knowledge of the state administration. The political atmosphere in the state seems to be providing fodder to troublemakers. The ethnic clashes — which have existed for long but the Indian Army ensured they don’t bubble over into large-scale violence — have been given a new colour: The division now is between the saffron-clad “cultural nationalists” (Meiteis) and the “infiltrators” (Kukis). The ruling BJP has succeeded in dividing people into those who say “Bharat Mata Ki Jai” or “Jai Shri Ram” and “the separatists supported by foreign forces”.
The graffiti on the walls of half-burnt buildings bore testimony to the situation: “SOS” (Separation Only Solution) and “No to Metei Products”.
There is a chilling method to the madness: Assailants reportedly enter a building, turn on the cooking gas cylinder and set the structure alight from a distance. The torched churches and schools — including those meant for poor children — and other educational institutions lay bare the depth of violence.
Even the Kuki MLAs who supported the BJP are not safe. One of them who we met explained his helplessness. He has been camped in the national capital to convince Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene to bring peace and normalcy back to Manipur. His attempts have been unsuccessful so far. The atmosphere is abuzz with rumours about how the state government has equipped Meiteis with arms and ammunition to attack the Kuki villages. Reports about stolen arms from the police have put some on guard and left others in fear.
They have divided the hearts of the people of Manipur.
Now that things have gone out of control, the Centre has initiated efforts to bring normalcy. But are they genuine? We cannot say.
What we have seen there was scary – the grief of loss, the agony of uncertainty and the hurt over your neighbour coming to torch your home — and has completely overtaken our thoughts. When we landed in the national capital on June 14, both of us were silent in the car from the airport to our Delhi residences. The upbeat mood we could see on the roadsides or the throbbing nightlife outside our windows did not bring us any comfort. We might take days to get back to normal but the memories of the pain and anguish on the faces of those helpless people — citizens of this country like you and me — will never fade away.
Manipur portrays what happens when those who have taken an oath to protect us pick a side.
Manipur is a lesson for those in power and those who cosy up to it: Pushing away the realities of the deepening division an ideology is creating, doesn’t change it.
It’s time to unmask those who allure the voters with promises of national unity and brotherhood but deploy their real agenda once they embrace power.
The prime minister is visiting foreign lands trying to become a “Vishwaguru” but he forgot to douse the flames in one of the smallest states in the country.
Hibi Eden is Congress Lok Sabha MP from Ernakulam and Dean Kuriackose, MP from Idukki. They visited Manipur from June 12-14
