Day of reckoning in two ACs Have the issues been addressed ?
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: November 21 2015 -

A day of reckoning. BJP versus the Congress.

One ruling at Delhi and the other in power in Manipur for three consecutive terms.

This is what is going to make the by election to the two Assembly Constituencies all that more interesting.

That the two parties see the by elections to the two Assembly Constituencies more than sending their representatives to the State Assembly should be clear, for in many ways this by elections may be seen as the warm up before the Assembly election sometime in 2017.

This is obviously the reason why the two parties have been roping in all the possible heavy weights during the campaigning.

With the Government of India inking the framework agreement with the NSCN (IM) in the early part of August this year, the Congress has been bringing up the issue of territorial integrity of the State very often during election meetings.

Not to be outdone, the BJP too has been training its guns on Deputy Chief Minister Gaikhangam, accusing him of appending his signature on a document that called for the integration of all Naga inhabited areas many years back.

So intense was the campaigning that the Congress did not hesitate in taking pot shots at the two BJP candidates, trumping the line that it was their proclivity to party hop that they were disqualified from the Assembly, necessitating the by elections.

It was to question the credibility of the Congress, that the BJP went the extra mile and pointed an accusing finger at Chief Minister O Ibobi over the phumdi clearance from Loktak Lake.

These are some of the major issues which have been debated during the campaigning for the by election. All fine for this is a reflection that there are issues which deserve to be brought before the notice of the people.

The interesting question however is whether the voters of the two Assembly Constituencies have deliberated upon the points which have been highlighted by the two parties ?

Will the debates influence the choice of the voters or will it just be two political parties trying to outgun each other ?

So far there is nothing much to suggest that the voters have taken it upon themselves to think over the points which have been raised by the candidates and their political parties.

The focus of the people seem to be more on how much the candidates are willing to spend on them. This reality is pathetic.

There is also nothing to suggest that probing questions on local issues have been raised in either of the two Assembly Constituencies.

Just to cite an example, why were no questions raised over the pathetic supply of potable water in Thangmeiband Assembly Constituency ?

Or is it a case of the voters not caring enough about it ?

Again there is nothing much to suggest that things were different in Thongju Assembly Constituency.

A by election it will be and while the result of the polls may define the standing of the political parties, there is nothing to suggest that the conditions of the people will see a difference.