Military rule in Myanmar fueled Manipur unrest: Amit Shah

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By Our Special Correspondent

New Delhi, August 9: Union Minister for Home Affairs Amit Shah on Wednesday blamed the military takeover in Myanmar for triggering unrest in Manipur. Countering the Opposition demands for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement in Parliament over Manipur violence, Shah asserted that ethnic violence incidents in the state under the watch of PV Narsimha Rao and Indra Gujral, when they headed the governments at the Centre, went for months and hundreds were killed but even the then Home Ministers didn’t reply in either of the House of Parliament.

“After the military takeover in Myanmar, the tribes from the neighbouring nation began trickling in the hills of Manipur. They settled in the hills, and rumour spread that 58 such settlements would be declared as forest villages. This led to the simmering tension among the tribal groups,” added Shah.

The minister also dismissed the demand for the imposition of President’s Rule in Manipur. “Article 356 is imposed in events when the chief minister doesn’t cooperate. The chief minister of Manipur is cooperating in efforts to deal with the situation in the state. The police administration is also cooperating,” said Shah.

He said that 152 people have been killed in Manipur so far. He added that 107 people were killed in the month of May in the state, arguing that violence is now coming down as seen in the death tolls.

The minister also stated that India and Myanmar have agreement since 1968 for the free passage of the people of the two countries within 40 kms of the border. “Our government started the border fencing. Work is going on for fencing for 60 kms. We have also been taking thumb and eye impressions of the refugees coming from Myanmar,” added Shah.

The minister said that the Manipur High Court order for including the Meitei tribe in the scheduled tribe list added fuel to fire in the state, which triggered the killing spree. He also questioned the release of the videos of the women paraded naked and sexually assaulted on the eve of the Monsoon session of Parliament, asking why the videos were not shared with the police. He said that if the videos had been shared timely, the action would have been taken promptly.

Shah also charged that the Central government in the last nine years has brought several parts of the Northeastern regions out of the purview of the AFSPA.