Don’t know why PM hasn’t visited : Uikey

New Delhi, Nov 22
Former Manipur Governor Anusuiya Uikey is stumped as to why Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not visited the troubled State despite repeated requests from her as well as members of civil society.
“People of the State wanted the PM to visit and they kept making requests, which I kept sending to the PMO (Prime Minister’s Office) but I don’t know why he has not visited,” she told ThePrint in an interview Wednesday, while speaking about the continuing ethnic violence in Manipur between the majority Meitei population and Kuki-Zo tribal community, and the need for “restoration of trust by the Centre”.
Uikey, who retired from the Manipur Raj Bhavan in July this year after taking charge in February 2023, said that she was deeply hurt about the outbreak of fresh violence this month after a few months of peace.
She had been at the helm as Governor in the conflict period starting from May 2023 and, according to her, the “only solution to the violence is restoration of mutual trust among both communities and the Central Government should take steps to build that”.
Uikey alleged that there was an “international hand behind the conflict, which is why violence can’t be stopped despite the Centre’s efforts”. She also spoke about her own efforts to restore normalcy in Manipur and defended Chief Minister N Biren Singh, who is being seen as responsible for the continued state of unrest.
“Traditionally, Manipur has been a State of rich culture and art. It is a beautiful State but the recent (November) violence has disrupted the peace that was established. How it has unfolded, I don’t know, but I am deeply shocked to hear how a woman was killed and burnt. I appeal to all people in Manipur to build confidence and mutual trust for enduring peace,” she said, referring to the brutal killing of a Hmar woman on 7 November in the State’s Jiribam district.
Uikey had said this February that the violence in Manipur had resulted in more than 200 deaths and displaced 60,000 people since it first broke out on 3 May 2023. In the latest flare-up, after the Zairawn incident, six Meitei women and children were allegedly abducted and killed in Jiribam. There have also been reports of attacks on houses and shops by armed men, and subsequent targeted attacks at a CRPF post and Borobekra police station. The toll in the latest wave of violence has reached 20, which includes casualties on both sides of the Kuki-Meitei conflict.
The current Governor of Manipur is Lakshman Acharya, who also holds the post in Assam. The Print