Who Cares for Manipur?

Manipur is burning again. This time, over the mysterious killing of a young man

Manipur is burning again. This time, over the mysterious killing of a young man, who, the police say, was shot in an encounter. But the media coverage of the incident where the man is seen being dragged inside a shopping mall and then his body brought out, has triggered off mass protests. Life in the capital Imphal has been paralysed due to a strike called by Manipuri organisations to protest the killing.

Such incidents create further problems for the Centre, which is already struggling to bring Manipur to the folds of normalcy. The fact is that Manipur is a failed state, and ordinary Manipuris are torn apart by a spate of kidnappings, extortion and utter lack of development.

A recent report by the US-based Human Rights Watch describes the situation in Manipur as a ‘cycle of unpunished violence, including killings, by security forces and armed groups’.
It is high time that New Delhi intervenes to show that it cares for Manipur. The policemen should not be spared if an independent probe finds them guilty. Only then does India have the moral authority needed to reign over Manipur. Or the entire North-east, for that matter.

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