10 oppn parties urge Manipur CM to arrange all-party meeting with PM to resolve ethnic conflict

Ten like-minded parties' bloc in Manipur led by the Congress on Sunday, 21 January urged Chief Minister N. Biren Singh to arrange an all party meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss ways and means to resolve the nine month-long ethnic violence in the northeastern state.

The leaders of 10 parties led by former three-time Manipur Chief Minister and veteran Congress leader Okram Ibobi Singh (2002-2017) met Chief Minister Biren Singh and told him that being the head of the political executive as the Chief Minister of the state, the "responsibility to convince the Prime Minister to find a solution to the conflict in Manipur lies squarely on you".

"We are with you in your effort to draw the attention of the Prime Minister to the present crisis," the 10 political parties told the Chief Minister in a jointly signed letter.

They said that considering the complexities of the problem/conflict, it would not be possible to find solutions to the problem without the active involvement of the Central government.

It is the government of India, who only can bring the parties in the conflict on the negotiating table and find a solution acceptable to all, the parties said.

The 10 parties, which also include the Aam Aadmi Party, Trinamool Congress, CPI-M, CPI, Forward Bloc, RSP, Shiv Sena-UBT, Janata Dal-United and Nationalist Congress Party, earlier demanded that the government should talk to all stakeholders for an amicable settlement of the crisis and bring ever-lasting peace and harmony in Manipur.

After the meeting with the opposition parties, Chief Minister Biren Singh said on the X : "Chaired a meeting with representatives of the 10 political parties at my Secretariat to address the current situation in Manipur. Constructive discussions were held, reflecting a united commitment to navigate challenges and work collectively for the well-being of our state."