Sikkim CM Prem Singh Tamang appeals for an end to gun culture in violent-hit state of Manipur

Chief Minister of Sikkim Prem Singh Tamang while attending an all-party meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the issue of Manipur crisis on June 24 urged the gun groups in any community, be it ceasefire or non-ceasefire groups, to end gun culture. 

“I have full faith that from this important gathering today, under the guidance of respected Amit Shah ji, we will get a determined direction on this subject,” said the Chief Minister.

He stated, "After independence, several incidents of caste/community clashes took place in various parts of the North Eastern Region, causing loss of innocent lives and hard-earned property overnight or within a month," indicating that the phenomenon of caste conflict in Northeast India is not new.

"The communities in India's North Eastern region have distinct cultures, languages, and identities. The Chief Minister stated, "Ego clashes and conflicts of interest between them sometimes lead to different reasons and controversial issues like natural resources."

Chief Minister Shri Prem Singh Tamang recalled the months-long conflict in the Bodoland region of Assam in 2008 and 2012, which resulted in over three lakh people being displaced, hundreds of deaths, and the torching of property worth crores of rupees. He said that these conflicts served as a lesson about how such unrest can have a significant impact on national integrity as well as the age-old relationship of coexistence within a state or region.

The Central Pastor familiar the house about how in the new times the Hamar Dimasa battle in 2003, Karbi Dimasa battle in 2005 and other such struggles that occurred during the Congress party drove government at the middle affected the typical lives. He went on to say that the Central Government under the Hon'ble Prime Minister and Home Minister played a more lenient and proactive role in accommodating the aspirations of the region's ethnic communities after 2014, when the center's leadership changed.

After the recent caste clashes, the Chief Minister stated that it will take some time to restore peace and normalcy in Manipur because it is impossible to persuade people of the need for peace when they are filled with disbelief, rage, and the agony of losing loved ones.

Chief Minister Tamang said, referring to the phrase "It is only a spark that burns the old bushes, but the trees and animals do not know where the spark comes from," that when a forest burns, people should either leave the area or face the consequences, which is what has happened in Manipur.

The Chief Minister praised the Union Home Minister for making an unprecedented appearance in a conflict-ravaged region to share people's pain, show solidarity, and organize security arrangements at ground level, stressing the importance of reuniting communities for therapeutic touch.

"We stand with those suffering the unbearable pain of losing their loved ones and valuable possessions," the Chief Minister stated, resolving Sikkim's and the entire Northeastern region's solidarity with Manipur's affected by the conflict.

He also asked the communities that were affected to honor the Home Minister's request that peace be restored in the state and asked the Central and State Governments to help the families that were affected on humanitarian grounds.

Also read : Congress leader Ibobi Singh questions PM's silence on Manipur in all-party meeting