I have tried to read up the social and political history for the sustained functioning of militancy/terrorism in various parts of India. Whether it’s the crisis in Jammu & Kashmir or Assam or the effort to tackle the menace of Naxalism or Khalistan or even the political imbroglio of the Nagas/Mizos/Bodos/Tripuris or the elimination of the the dreaded Veerapan, I have no doubt that the most complex situation is that of Manipur. The Meetei civil society as well as the insurgents will not quite agree to the demand of the Nagas; and the Nagas in general will not give in to the demand of the Kukis. The Kukis are not in good terms with the Paites or say UNLF. Each ethnic group needs to support their underground brothers or the other ethnic group will bully the one that does not have the support of the gun wielding young men and women. Without NSCN Meeteis will bully the Nagas, and there is no doubt about that in the mind of every Naga; and the same applies to the Meeteis. Even each politician must have at least one militant group as their benefactor, whether it’s during election or after that. Some politicians will have multiple militant groups as their protector. But without such support from gun wielding brethren they cannot survive in politics. And for the support every politician must shell out couple of lakhs each year. Even businessmen are not spared.
In social and political matrix of Manipur it is very difficult to decipher which individual or community do not have a stake in the flourishing of small scale militant industry. Everybody is deep into it. The Church and the bureaucracy too have a stake. After all each individual in the church or bureaucracy is made up of individual who belongs to a particular ethnic group.
On the other hand it is the politicians who are against the withdrawal of Armed Forces Special Powers Act, the Act that gives power even to non-commissioned officer to shoot anyone on mere suspicion so as to maintain public law and order. For a politician it does not matter if all the underground groups are killed provided the group that protects him is kept happy. But in the whole process some members of politicians protectors will also get killed. But that’s the way it has to be. Because withdrawal of the Act will make things chaotic.
Each politician who comes to power will try to keep CBI away as the entry of CBI will unlock all the connections—the involvement of every politician in corruption and the siphoning off of money to the militants. Oftentimes money that are meant for development will be shared between a local politician, militants and bureaucrats. No wonder every politician, every senior militants and every bureaucratic will have big buildings and big cars and big belly. The Imphal that was 20 years back is long gone. If there is any city has gone worse from bad in all 20 years then it must be Imphal. Other cities get better and better each decade whereas for Imphal it’s the other way round.
I don’t have any expectation from the government. Nor do I expect the Church to bring any change. I don’t have any expectation from the existing NGOs either. Even Christian NGOs are equally bad like any other (or should I say equally good!) Didn’t they say that God works through us! Well, there is no one through whom God can work. Because there is no one… or rather because God has forsaken it!
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