If elected, I will redress tribal grievances properly: Mani Chirenamei

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LAMKA, March 6: Independent candidate for the Outer Manipur Parliamentary Constituency Mani Chirenamei ex-MP (Lok Sabha), today had an interaction with media at Lamka Press Club.

The outer parliamentary constituency is an important platform for the redressal of the grievances’ of the tribal of Manipur, he said.

However, it is unfortunate that due to the failure of the present and past representatives to even stand inside the Parliament, redressing the problems have taken a back seat.

Chirenamei added “I chose to contest as an Independent candidate as I believe this is the only pragmatic way of directly redressing the problems, the representatives from the national party will never dare to do as they have to tow to their party line and then end up as mute spectators.”

“We need to present our genuine problems in the purest form without being twisted, that luxury of presenting genuine problems was absent with the representatives of the political parties who will surely twist the problem as per their party diktat,” he added.

He said delimitation of power had been carried out in all parts of the country, except in Manipur and it should be affected as it was in the interest of the tribal.

The present norm throughout the country is that around 30-35 thousand of voters constitute an assembly constituency, however, the main practice in the state is that around 40 thousand voters form a constituency in the hills while only 10-20 thousand forma constituency in the hills, he alleged.

He further lamented that 40 seats from the valley to the 20 seats from the hills as unfair and that atleast five more seats are necessitated from the hills.

He further lamented that the allotment of seats should not be based only on population but also in size.

He said he had made a proposal for the improvement of the Guite Road and the NH 150 which connects the state with Mizoram and Myanmar respectively.

“However, the present government had nipped it in the bud.”

He said he had also proposed development of Behiang village on the Myanmar border to be a major border trade center which had seen similar fate as the two roads, he added.

If elected, he said, he will take a though stand against the government apathy to the SoO group of the hills district as a top priority while solemnly saying that he is against no group irrespective of community and will be fully available to help the KNO or UPF and the Nagas who are in agreement with the government.

He declared he is not a pro NSCN while answering question from the media.

He further said he will vehemently work to uplift the draconian AFSPA from the state; and added instead of bridging the gap, it had divide “us from the mainland Indians and it should go.”

He also said that he was aware and deeply hurt by the atrocities again Christian all over India. Direct railway reservation centres in the hill and improvement of sports infrastructures in the hills are other concerns, he added.

On the district boundary issues and the MLR&LR Act, he said he will see to it that it remains corrected if given the mandate and that the 20 MLAs of the hills need to be more concerned about the issue.

I will support the best policy for the tribals of Manipur hills at large, he said when asked about the various demands including the UNC’s Alternative Arrangement, Kuki State and the Autonomous Hills State.

He further added that it would be good if there was a unified plan and if the plan doesn’t interfere with the other party’s demands.

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