As is wont to happen sooner or later, the Peace Committee constituted by the Union Home Ministry with the objectives of bringing the burning state of Manipur back to normalcy is coming apart at the seams with many of the members walking out and publicly expressing their displeasure at the haphazard and disorderly manner in which the union government set up the committee. Accusing the state and central government of acting on its own without prior information or consent of the members included in the committee, a sizeable number of members has declared their decision to stay away from the committee. The growing concern with the general public is whether the committee will go ahead with its instructions from the union home ministry and whether the recommendations or suggestions of the committee will be acceptable and fair. On the other hand, the assumptious nature and the utter disregard for the views and preferences of the members yet again brings to the fore the way in which the centre views and handles the affairs of the state. It is pertinent to note that the initiative for peace and reconciliation by the central government, though essential is premature to say the least as even though the Security Advisor who has also been deputed by the centre as head of the unified command of the armed forces in the state have been repeatedly reassuring the people of the state that the militants under SoO tripartite agreement has already been confined to their designated camps, yet the reality on the ground is in stark contrast and the raids on already displaces villagers and civilians has continued unabated or unchecked even though security forces have been deployed in almost every part of the state. Does it then not confirm the fact that there are heavily armed narco-terrorists from across the border involved in perpetuating the attack on villagers across the state which the security forces of india, despite being ranked fourth in the world according to the Global Firepower Index 2022 has been unable to contain. Add to the fact that the two national highways connecting the miniscule state to the rest of India is still under threat from looters and vandals taking advantage of the unstable situation continuing in the state with the Imphal-Dimapur road under complete lockdown despite pleadings and reassurances from the Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Peace is welcome and is also a precursor to the process of rebuilding the state and the long and arduous journey towards normalcy but at this juncture while the attacks and killings are still being perpetuated on the innocent villagers, talks for peace would be a futile process. The killings would need to stop and the perpetrators restrained for parties to come to the table with the earnest intent of trying to find a lasting and pragmatic solution to the issue which has its roots, even if partially, in the archaic and illogical provisions of the Indian Constitution carried over from the British colonial rule.
The inexplicable silence of the Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi on whose reassurances and promises the people of the state voted his party to power even as the state has been burning for more than a month with body count continuing to increase with each passing day has added resentment and sense of abandonment in the mind of the general public making the attempt of the state and central government at ushering peace and understanding in the state an almost impossible task at this juncture.