Collective prayers, reconciliation sought to end Manipur crisis

Founder of the Jesus Calls organisation and Chancellor of Karunya University, Dr Paul Dhinakaran, has called for collective prayers and efforts to bring peace and reconciliation in Manipur.

Dhinakaran, who arrived in Imphal from Chennai on Thursday, said his visit was aimed at supporting efforts towards peace through prayer and preaching.

Addressing a press conference in Imphal, he said the conflict in Manipur had affected people across sections of society and that his organisation had been making efforts to extend support through Jesus Calls and SEESA Humanitarian.

He said around 25 students from Manipur had received full scholarships for engineering education at Karunya University in Coimbatore over the past three years. The students are staying on the university campus as residential students, he said, adding that the organisation spends around Rs 3 crore annually on the initiative.

Dhinakaran said the main purpose of his visit was to bring together people concerned about Manipur and pray for a solution to the ongoing crisis.

He announced that a prayer gathering would be held at 9 am on September 26 at the Baptist Church on Namdulong Stadium Road in Imphal, in association with other churches. He appealed to people from all communities to come together and work towards a peaceful future, particularly for the younger generation.

He also said members of the Manipur Legislative Assembly had invited him to a prayer meeting on Thursday evening. Dhinakaran said he had met the Deputy Chief Minister earlier in the day and prayed with him for Manipur and projects planned for the state.

He expressed hope of meeting Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand in the evening to pray for peace in Manipur.

Speaking about his organisation's activities, Dhinakaran said it was his practice to pray with political and administrative leaders. He said he had met Prime Minister Narendra Modi three times and recently spent time praying with Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

Dhinakaran expressed hope that reconciliation would come to Manipur soon and said people, particularly the youth, would have an important role in finding a way forward.