Manipur ground report: What finally triggered President's Rule?
Governor, bureaucracy favour move; high-ranking state government officials believe it could help them cleanse the mess without political interference
Nearly two years of a violent ethnic strife took a political toll on the BJP government in Manipur this week, with N Biren Singh resigning as Chief Minister on Sunday (February 9), and the imposition of President's Rule on Thursday (February 13).
What tipped the balance in favour of President's Rule was the Manipur bureaucracy being strongly in favour of it, sources told The Federal. High-ranking government officials believed it could help them cleanse the mess without any political interference, the sources added.
Also read: Ground report | People in a flux as constitutional crisis grips Manipur
They reportedly conveyed their concern over the proliferation of armed groups in the state and cross-border terrorism. Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla was also in favour of President's Rule to flush out armed groups and recover looted arms and ammunition, the sources told The Federal.
The Manipur Assembly, which has a tenure till 2027, has been put under suspended animation, according to a notification issued by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs.
Peace Forum welcomes move
The Forum for Restoration of Peace welcomed the imposition of President’s Rule. “The change was required to pave the way for dialogues between Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities,” said Ashang Kasar, the convenor of the forum.
The forum is jointly floated by two neutral communities — Nagas and Pangals (Meitei Muslims) — to mediate peace between two warring communities.
Prefer President’s Rule over new CM: Kuki Zo body
The Kuki-Zo community has also hailed the imposition of President’s Rule. The apex body of the community, the Indigenous Tribal Leader’s Forum, in a press statement said, "The president's rule is more preferable than a change of chief minister. The Kuki-Zo do not trust Meitei anymore, so a new Meitei chief minister is still far from comforting.”
The organisation said, “President's Rule will give a ray of hope to the Kuki-Zo, and we believe that it will be one step closer to our political solution.”
“With the President's Rule, I believe the groundwork to end violence will begin, which will pave the way for a conducive environment for political dialogue," the statement said.
