Opposition MPs flag Manipur situation at home affairs meeting

The situation in Manipur was flagged by opposition MPs in a meeting of the parliamentary committee on home affairs on 12 November, Tuesday, where home secretary Govind Mohan gave an extensive presentation on the home ministry's achievements and vision, including those related to the North-East, sources said.

It was the second meeting of the recently reconstituted Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs, headed by the BJP's Radha Mohan Das Agarwal.

According to the sources, as a presentation was made on the achievements of the home ministry over the last 10 years, opposition MPs on the panel said that the ministry had not given any details of the areas where improvements are required.

The presentation had three pages on the ministry's achievements in the North-East, which mentioned peace accords signed with different insurgent groups.

An opposition MP, however, pointed out that Manipur was not mentioned. The remark was backed by other opposition members.

A woman MP, meanwhile, mentioned the recent incident of a woman being allegedly raped and burnt alive in Manipur, while another member said he felt uncomfortable with the way the state — which has been witnessing disturbance and violence for over a year now — is being "overlooked".

The source said the presentation went on for two hours.

Opposition members claimed there was only one slide on Centre–state relations, which was skipped; so were the slides on women's safety.

Opposition MPs, as well as an MP from the ruling alliance, said federalism should be given more importance, while a woman MP objected to the slides on women's safety being skipped, the sources claimed.

Another MP who is a part of the committee said that Centre–state relations should not have been just one out of 69 slides in the presentation, and the issue should have been extensively discussed by the panel.

Members also suggested that issues such as modernisation of the police, which comes within the ambit of reforms required, should be discussed.

The source added that the home secretary and other officials may appear before the committee again for cross-questioning by the MPs.

Over 200 people have been killed in ethnic violence in Manipur since May 2023. Tension has again risen high as of last week, with a fresh round of violence in Jiribam.

A ruling party MP, meanwhile, raised concerns over cyber security and rampant financial fraud as well.