SC flagged ‘breakdown’ in Manipur, Centre took 18 months to act: Jairam Ramesh

Senior Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh has slammed the central government over the prolonged delay in imposing President’s Rule in Manipur, despite the Supreme Court's observation in August 2023 that there was an "absolute breakdown of constitutional machinery" in the state.

Welcoming the upcoming visit of six Supreme Court judges to Manipur on March 22, Ramesh questioned the government’s inaction. 

"Why did it take almost 18-19 months to act when the Supreme Court had already made it clear that the situation had collapsed?" he asked.

He also criticized the handling of the Governor’s position, pointing out that Manipur had no full-time Governor for six months. 

"They removed a tribal leader and handed additional charge to the Assam Governor before appointing a retired bureaucrat. Why this delay?" he said.

Also Read: TMC MPs stage walkout over FM Sitharaman’s ‘superficial’ reply on Manipur budget

Furthermore, Ramesh took aim at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his continued silence on the Manipur crisis. "The Prime Minister goes to Assam but doesn’t visit Manipur. Why? The pain of Manipur is the pain of India, yet he remains silent," he added.

It is to be mentioned here that Supreme Court's Justice B R Gavai and five other judges would visit the relief camps in ethnic violence-hit Manipur on March 22, the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) has said.

Over 200 people were killed, several hundreds injured and thousands displaced since ethnic violence first broke out in the state on May 3, 2023 when a "tribal solidarity march" was organised in the hill districts to protest against the majority Meitei community's demand for scheduled tribe status.

NALSA said Justice Gavai, also the executive chairman of NALSA, along with top court judges Justices Surya Kant, Vikram Nath, M M Sundresh, K V Viswanathan and N Kotiswar Singh would visit relief camps on the occasion of the duodecennial celebrations of the Manipur High Court.

With ethnic violence and instability persisting in Manipur, the Supreme Court’s upcoming visit has heightened scrutiny over the government’s response and its long delay in addressing the crisis.