Imphal, November 29: Officially the MLAs from the hill districts of Manipur are in Delhi to present their case and air their grievances over the manner in which the State Government has side stepped the recommendations submitted by the Hill Areas Council from time to time, but unofficially they are in Delhi to throw their weight behind the Chief Ministership of O Ibobi.

It is against these two diametrically opposite stands that many MLAs from the hill districts are presently in Delhi.

The MLAs, led by the Chairman of the Hill Areas Committee Thangminlien Kipgen include Wungnao-shang Keishing, Doukhomang Khongsai, K Raina, V Hangkhanlian, Morung Makunga, M Thorii, Awangbou Newmai, Dr Khashim Ruivah, Danny Shaiza and Thangkholun Haokip.

Speaking to The Sangai Express at the office of the HAC Chairman before their departure for New Delhi, the MLAs said that their trip to Delhi has nothing to do with the internal crisis of the Congress Legislature Party.

The MLAs said that it would be politically as well as ethically wrong to involve themselves in matters which are strictly the internal problems of the Congress.

They reasoned that if they get involved in any of the two camps, there is no question of getting any Ministerial berths.

There is no point in non-Congress MLAs to get involved in the internal matter of the CLP, they added.

Spelling out the agenda for the Delhi trip, Kipgen and Makunga said that they are going to highlight to the Prime Minister and the Union Home Minister of the failure of the State Government to act on the recommendations submitted by the HAC from time to time.

The MLAs are also planning to meet the Vice Chairperson of the Planning Commission during their stay at Delhi.

Other than their grievances, the hill MLAs are set to discuss issues pertaining to the implementation of the provisions of the 6th Schedule, election to the autonomous district councils and tribal sub-plan.

However on the other hand, unofficial sources said that the primary purpose of the hill MLAs is to make their support to Chief Minister O Ibobi known to AICC chief Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil.

Speaking to The Sangai Express an MLA who is also part of the team, said on condition of anonymity that they will urge the AICC leadership not to remove O Ibobi.

Asserting that the hill MLAs have thrown their weight behind O Ibobi, the MLA said that this will be made clear to the AICC leadership in no uncertain terms.

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