Reserve ACs for indigenous folks call : Real threat perception
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: August 29 2017 -

Regulate or check the inflow of non-local people into the State.

Bar non-locals from contesting elections in Assembly segments which have been identified as vulnerable.

The common thread running through the two demands can be easily discerned.

Tough to say how the State Government goes about dealing with the two demands, but the bitter lesson of 2015 should still be haunting the collective psyche of the Government and the people and it should be more than clear that the pull factor of Manipur is immense and this is a point which should not overlooked casually.

It is not only the conducive climate which makes Manipur an attractive option for numerous people looking for a livelihood but also the pathetic absence of work culture amongst the local people of the State.

It is this vacuum which many have rushed in to fill and what Manipur sees today is the threat that has crossed from the strictly economic base to the political sphere and it is this which the Kangleipak Students’ Association has been highlighting in its demand to bar all non-locals from contesting in elections in the State, even going to the extent of naming some Assembly segments as being highly vulnerable.

The threat perception is real and if not tackled on time, there may come a time when non-locals flood the State Assembly representing one Constituency or the other.

And all knows how the situation may unfold if this threat becomes a reality.

It should also be kept in mind that vote bank politics too plays a major role and all political parties may stand guilty.

It is not without reason why it has been pointed out that there is a political reason on why no strict and urgent steps were taken up to link one’s voter ID card with one’s Aadhar Card, while it has become necessary to link one’s Aadhar Card with one’s mobile number and bank account.

This reality should underline the point why the threat perception felt by KSA and JCILPS is real.

For the hills, there is no such threat for remember they are Constitutionally protected and forget about non-local people, even non-tribals but indigenously from Manipur cannot buy landed properties or contest in election in the hills.

It is this reality which all hill based civil society organisations too should appreciate and take note of.

Or should the attention of the people be focused on the demand raised by the Scheduled Tribe Demand Committee, Manipur that the Meiteis be included in the ST list of the Constitution, for this would automatically provide the Constitutional protection that one is talking about here ?

Which ever way the dice rolls, it should be noted that the threats felt by the KSA and the JCILPS are real and sincere thoughts ought to be given to the demands raised.

It is also right for the common people to ponder over the question of why Manipur continues to have such a powerful pull factor.

It is here that both sides, meaning the Government and the people need to work together.

On its part the Government need to study what may be done to regulate the inflow of non-locals into the State and for the people, it is only right that they begin questioning themselves why so many non-local people come here in droves to take up vocations, which the locals are reluctant to take up.