Manipur women's collective calls upon BJP state president for new govt formation

Representatives of 'United Mothers of Manipur', a women's body, on Saturday called on state BJP president A Sharda Devi and requested for the formation of a new government in the state. 

President's rule was imposed in the northeastern state on February 13, four days after Chief Minister N Biren Singh resigned from his position. The assembly has also been put under suspended animation.

The women's collective, known in the Meitei language as 'Apunba Manipur gi Emasing', submitted a memorandum to Sharda Devi at the state BJP headquarters with a six-point demand, including the lifting of President's rule.

It also called for the detection and deportation of illegal immigrants from the state and prioritising the hardships faced by internally displaced persons. 

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The memorandum also condemned the "unwarranted arrest of village volunteers", and called for taking up immediate and effective steps to resolve the ongoing turmoil in the state. The women's body also demanded the destruction of all poppy plantations in the state. 

Later, Thongam Ongbi Inaocha Devi, a representative of the organisation, told reporters, "The BJP state president informed us that they (state BJP) have been consistently urging the governor for the formation of a new government and she assured us that efforts will be made to restore peace at the earliest." 

Sharda also said there is no division among the BJP MLAs, Devi added. More than 250 people have been killed and thousands rendered homeless in ethnic conflict between Imphal Valley-based Meiteis and adjoining hills-based Kukis in Manipur since May 3, 2023.