Manipur violence: Over 110 ex-bureaucrats urge Centre to impose President’s rule

Over 110 former civil servants on Sunday urged the Central government to impose President’s rule in Manipur, saying that situation in the state has snowballed into a dangerous, internecine ethnic conflict.

The former bureaucrats said that the Manipur conflict not only threatens to tear apart the social fabric of the state but also “questions the spirit of harmony and fraternity that is the foundation of India’s unity in diversity”.

Manipur has been witnessing ethnic clashes between the Kuki and the majority Meitei communities since May 3. At least 187 people have been killed and nearly 60,000 have been forced to flee their homes.

Opposition parties have held the BJP governments in Manipur and at the Centre responsible for failing to contain the violence. Their criticism was bolstered after a video showing two Kuki women being paraded naked was widely shared on social media on July 19.

The parties have also been demanding a statement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the violence in Manipur in Parliament, followed by a longer discussion. However, the Modi-led government has agreed to a short-duration discussion.

On Sunday, the former bureaucrats said that the N Biren Singh-led state government and the police have failed to protect the life and property of citizens.

“This has created the conditions for a...

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