10 political parties tell BJP govt to relieve Kuki-Zo MLAs from their role as MLAs, cabinet ministers

Representatives of 10 political parties in Manipur have advised the BJP government to take action against the 10 Kuki-Zo MLAs and urged it to relieve them from their legislative role as members of legislative assembly and cabinet ministers.

Addressing a press briefing on Friday at Manipur Press Club, Imphal, the Communist Party of India (CPI) leader Laishram Sotinkumar asked why has not the government taken action against the MLAs who have not participated in cabinet meetings or the assembly sessions.

Demanding action from the government against the Kuki-Zo MLAs, Sotinkumar advised the government to act and relieve the Kuki-Zo MLAs from their role as members of legislative assembly and cabinet ministers. "The actions of the 10 Kuki-Zo MLAs defy both the Indian Constitution and democratic values. Therefore, the MLAs ought to be suspended without delay," he said.

The Convenor of the 10 political parties, Kshetrimayum Santa, while briefing the media asked whether the BJP took any disciplinary measures against the BJP MLAs who voiced dissent within their party. “Are they merely trying to pacify the 10 dissenting MLAs and others with their appeasement tactics?” he questioned.

Reacting to the recent statement by the BJP Manipur President, Adhikarimayum Sarda, on the BJP MLAs’ non-involvement in demand for separate administration, Kshetrimayum Santa compared the BJP’s method of handling Manipur issue to Adolf Hitler’s false propaganda leading to World War II.

Santa, who is also the Secretary of Communist Party of India (Marxist), then accused the State BJP president of spreading false propaganda to the media and dubbed the BJP government in Manipur as a double standard government.

Explaining his labelling of the BJP government as a “Double Standard Government,” Santa further said that the BJP Government in Manipur appears to align with hill residents at times and with valley residents at others. "Such inconsistency of the BJP government is the reason why it is termed as a double standard government."

The convenor of the ten political parties also shared insights of their discussion with the Union Home Minister, Amit Shah, on May 29. Santa said when he inquired if the Centre had a strategy to manage illegal immigrants after the Junta regime had seized power in Myanmar, Amit Shah had responded that no such policy existed and there was also no bilateral discussions with Myanmar.

He alleged that the BJP government never initiated a genuine dialogue but they were quick in propagating misinformation. "The BJP's tactics mirror Adolf Hitler’s approach during the Great Depression era, preceding World War II, where he flooded the narrative with deceptive propaganda to make falsehoods seemed authentic," Santa said.

"The BJP will attribute issues to narco-terrorism, point fingers at illegal immigrants, or discuss forest conservation, constantly shifting the narrative. Amit Shah had previously attributed the conflict in Manipur to the ST demand by the Meitei. The BJP leaders are inconsistent, altering their statements frequently," he added.

The Convenor of the 10 political parties said that such misinformation has muddled the BJP government's perspective, leading to the BJP Manipur Chief, Sarda Devi, confronting the journalists.