Sit-in-protest staged on Monika issue
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, October 04: Functionaries and volunteers of North East Students' Organisation's constituent bodies as well as former and present-day sportspersons staged sit-in-protest at Latasil ground in Guwahati yesterday in denunciation for preventing weightlifter L Monika Devi from participating at the recently concluded Beijing Olympic Games as well as in demand for making public the investigation report on the said issue.

Representatives of NESO's constituent units and sports personalities at a sit-in-protest staged against L Monika Devi's exclusion

An AMSU statement issued today further maintained that the protest was organised to condemn exclusion of Monika Devi from the Beijing Games which is akin to discriminating against the people of North East region and to demand punitive action against the guilty persons responsible to denying the weightlifter an opportunity to compete with the world's best.

While AMSU president Khamba Laishram along with hockey Olympians Thoiba, Tiken and body-builder Kh Pradipkumar represented Manipur at the protest, NESO's functionaries led by its chairman Dr Samujjal Bhattacharya and a number of sportsperson also took part at the sit-in-protes.

In their remarks at the demonstration site, representatives of NE States un-equivocally expressed that preventing Monika from the Beijing Games clearly reflects discriminatory attitude of the Central authorities against the people of the region and pledged to work in unison to eradicate such step-motherly treatment.