During the one-day visit of Union Home Minister Amit Shah to Manipur on Sunday, some civil society organisations (CSOs) met with him with their demands.
After a public speech here, Mr. Shah met the leaders of the CSOs separately, though Chief Minister N. Biren was present. Important among the CSOs were the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), the United Naga Council (UNC), the Kuki Impi Manipur and the Zeliangrong Boudi.
Sunil Karam, coordinator of the COCOMI, said, “We had demanded that any kind of deal should not compromise the unity of Manipur in any manner. There should not be any kind of division among the different communities”. Welcoming the suggestion, Mr. Shah assured the team that no step had been taken in that direction. He also said that there should not be panic among the people on this issue.
Mr. Karam said, “We had put up the people’s demand endorsed in the public convention for a special status of Manipur. However the Home Minister said that the issue should be staved off for future discussion”.
S. Kho John, president of the UNC, said, “We had demanded conclusion of the 24-year-old peace talks. Some significant steps should be taken up in this direction. Mr. Shah had told us that the talks are going in the right direction”.
The representatives of the Kuki Impi Manipur sought justice for the Kukis before any solution. They said that justice had not been done for the massacre of Kuki villagers in Manipur. The representatives of the Zeliangrong Boudi led by president P. Kamei demanded the creation of the territorial council of the Zeliangrongs who settled in Assam, Manipur and Nagaland.
