Manipur home minister urges JFD to call off 24-hour strike over census

Manipur Home Minister Govindas Konthoujam on August 31 appealed to the Justice and Fair Delimitation (JFD) to withdraw its proposed 24-hour general strike over the Census after the Centre decided to defer the exercise in the state.

Speaking at a press conference at Thambal Shanglen, Konthoujam said the Centre’s decision followed a high-level meeting in New Delhi chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla, Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh and senior officials also attended the meeting.

Konthoujam said the decision to defer the Census was taken after the Union Government considered the concerns and sentiments of the people of Manipur.

He urged the JFD to reconsider its decision to call the strike, warning that a shutdown could inconvenience the public and affect essential services.

The home minister also appealed to civil society organisations and other groups involved in the agitation to withdraw their planned programmes following the Centre’s decision.

Konthoujam said a team of BJP MLAs that visited New Delhi had held discussions with several leaders and helped convey the concerns and aspirations of people in Manipur to the Centre.

He said the decision to defer the Census was the outcome of discussions and consultations at the highest level and was taken with the sentiments of the people in mind.

Rejecting the suggestion that the Census had been deferred solely because of a court order, Konthoujam said the decision was taken by the Government of India after considering the aspirations of the people of Manipur.

The minister also recalled that Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh had earlier said the state government would act in accordance with the aspirations of the people.

The JFD had announced a 24-hour general strike from Tuesday morning over the Census issue.