NB In List | Amit Shah explains what fuelled the fire in Manipur & appeals for peace ‘with folded hands’; Key statements-

New Delhi, Aug 9: From explaining what fuelled the fire in Manipur to urging the Kukis and Meiteis to “come to the talks table”, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday appealed “with folded hands” for the restoration of peace in Manipur and backed Chief Minister Biren Singh.

  

 

1. There was no bandh, no blockade in Manipur. Insurgent violence was almost over. Then, neighbouring Myanmar saw a military leadership - that has a Kuki Democratic Front party - coming into power. Due to no fencing at the Myanmar border, the Kuki brothers started coming into Mizoram and Manipur, which created insecurities among Meities.

 

2. Explaining the factors that led to clashes, Shah said that on April 29, a rumour spread that some refugee settlements in forest areas were declared as villages. The government, he said, announced that no such villages were declared but rumours still spread due to trust deficit. He said that what fuelled the fire was Manipur High Court's order, directing the state government to consider Tribal status to Meities. Due to this, he said, a clash broke out on May 3.

 

3. "The Prime Minister called me at 4 am and 6 am for three days straight. He was very concerned. We conducted 16 video conferences, sent the security advisor, deployed 36,000 security personnel, changed the chief secretary and the DGP."

 

 

4. Responding to why the Centre did not use Article 356 to invoke President's rule in Manipur, Shah said Article 356 is used when the state government is not cooperating with the Centre during the violence. On why the Centre did not remove Chief Minister Biren Singh, he explained, "A state chief minister needs to be changed when he is not cooperating. This CM is operated with the Centre".

 

5. "I appeal to both communities in Manipur with folded hands to renounce violence. Please come to the talks table with the Government of India and let us find a way to restore Manipur to the path of progress and prosperity. Only dialogue can lead to a solution. Come and talk to us together."

 

6. "I agree with the opposition that there is a cycle of violence in Manipur. Nobody can support such incidents. Whatever happened is shameful, but to politicise those events is even more shameful"

 

7. "A misconception was spread across the country that this government is not ready to discuss Manipur. Even when there was no ruckus in the House, I had written a letter saying that we are ready to discuss Manipur. However, they didn’t want a discussion, they just wanted chaos. If they would have not been satisfied with my points, then they should have demanded the PM’s statement. But, the Opposition was not ready to have the discussion."

 

 

 

8. Questioning the timing of the “release” of the video clip of women being stripped and paraded in Manipur, Amit Shah said, “Someone brought it to my notice, why a May 4 video was released just a day before the start of the Parliament session? The Intelligence agencies did not have it, but why did you not share it with the police if you had it earlier. Whoever had the video, if they had given it to the DGP on May 4, the culprits would have been apprehended by May 5. Because the day the video clip was brought to light, we used face-detection technology and government database and apprehended the nine accused"

 

9. During Congres's rule, there were numerous incidents of violence in Manipur, yet no home minister went there. I stayed there for three days, and our MoS (Minister of State) Shri Nityanand Rai stayed there continuously for 23 days.

 

10. He said Opposition leaders like Rahul were “adding fuel to the fire”. “Rahul Gandhi wanted to go to Churachandpur, we had made arrangements for him to go by helicopter. But he was adamant that he would go by road,” he said.

 

11. The Opposition may have no confidence in the government, but the people of India have confidence in us.