Open letter to the Chairman Unified Command, Manipur

Sir,
While congratulating your taking over the most challenging job as Chairman of the IAUC, Manipur and expressing our firm belief that you will do whatever is possible within your official, legal and discretionary powers to do justice with an iron hand to bring peace to this (once peaceful but burning today) State, I beg to place herewith some points along with the doubts and fears of the general public for your kind clarification through a public statement or through your press briefing.
(1) In the current situation, International and National media have reportedly drawn a picture of the Meitei brutality mercilessly torturing our Tribal brothers, burning their houses, trying to push them out of Manipur.
- Are the GoI and Gom also sharing the same view? If not, what are the views of the GoI and GoM?
(2) Some parts of Meitei villages in Churachandpur were reportedly attacked, houses vandalized and torched in the evening of 03/05/2023. Neither the State Police nor the Assam Rifles, despite repeated SoS calls, ventured to protect the victims. But the Police came only to arrest the Myanmarese (who cannot speak Kuki and/or any other Tribal dialect used in CCpur fluently) who was caught with his gun by the defending villagers while shooting and injuring 2(two) villagers. The Police refused to take away with them the injured for medical attention. The Assam Rifles reached the place after 2.30 am (04/05/2023) and made the villagers feel relieved. The AR Officers reportedly instructed the villagers to go with them to their camp for safety with assurance that they (AR) will protect the remaining houses and properties in the village. Movement of villagers to the AR Camp (Tuibong) completed at around 7.30 am (04/05/2023). Nobody grouse the difficulties that passed through in the AR custody for the difficulties on the part of the AR for a sudden incident like that is well understood. One of the villagers died of shock around mid-day but the corpse remained with the crowd for 4 (four) days. The person with the bullet unremoved for many days. Despite proclaiming curfew within the whole of Churachandpur District, armed groups speaking Myanmarese led by locally known Kuki and ZRA Activist started entering the village at around 9 am (04/05/2023), started burning small houses/cottages and vandalized houses which the miscreants might have presumed to have been completely looted started burning from around 9.30 pm of 04/05/2023. Similar activities went on for the next 7-8 days. Thereafter, unburnt structures of the buildings were pulled down using Bulldozers and Earth-Movers (Proclain/JCB), all in broad daylight. It is a mission “Delete the Trace of Meiteis from the land” with the unwritten concurrence of the District Admn./Police.
- Do the above statement tally with the report of the Distt. Admn./Police and the last sentence of the para admitted?, if not, may kindly enlighten the public with the official version.
(3) An appeal of the Hon’ble CM not to disturb the vehicular movements of the Security Forces, more particularly the Assam Rifles has been made through the print and electronic media. We, as honourable and patriotic citizens are supposed to spread awareness to the people hitherto ignorant. Unfortunately however, we find it difficult to find words for explanation in defense of the AR in view of some pin-pointed incidents when Manipur Police/IRB cornered them. We wish all these allegations to be wild imaginations of rumour mongers. We don’t want to believe what the TV Channels had broadcasted as news bulletin the “Sugnu Police Station incident of 02/06/2023”, but for that, we need clear explanations. Kindly make us, the literate public, aware of the actual facts and the state policies through media so that we can comfortably and confidently talk to our mothers and sisters and convince them. Please also advice the Hon’ble CM in your capacity as Chairman (IAUC) to add four words “he won’t betray us” just after his trademark words “please trust and have faith in his Govt.” while making public appeals through media.
Hope you will kindly have a serious study of this letter, ensure due acknowledgement through print and electronic media and provide us the privilege of hearing from you on all the points mentioned above in the public and national interest.

Yours faithfully,
Thokchom Netaji Meitei
Nambol Makha Leikai, Nambol, Manipur