The sense of normalcy visible at Imphal city gradually gives way to a sense of distrust and a deep divide as Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra passed through Imphal West and into Kuki-dominated Kangpokpi.
On Monday, January 15, 2024 , second day of the 67-day-long Manipur-to-Mumbai yatra, Mr. Gandhi’s customised Volvo bus went past some of the areas that had become battlegrounds after ethnic violence between the Meitei community and the Kuki tribes erupted on May 3 last year.
Deployment of security personnel outside some villages, a completely damaged house with a signboard that read “Meitei Go,” several signs boards that read “Welcome to Kuki land,” the signs of a deep social divide were very much visible.
Manipur Congress chief Keisham Meghachandra Singh, former Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh, both from the Meitei community, were missing from Mr. Gandhi’s entourage as enthusiastic crowds lined up the narrow roads while moving from Imphal to Kohima.
At Karong, a group of young boys with the Indian tricolour in their hands, alternated their slogans between “Rahul Gandhi zindabad” and “We want separate administration”.
“I understand that you have been through . You have lost family members, you have lost property. I want you to understand that we are fully with you and want to bring peace to Manipur,” Mr. Gandhi said in one of his roadside public address.
At different points, be it Keithelmanbi Military Colony or Kalapahar Bazar at Kangpokpi district, boards announced that outsiders were not allowed after 5 p.m.
‘Both communities express confidence in Rahul’
“We know that the situation is still fragile but Rahul ji has come forward with his message of peace and harmony. People from both the communities, be they Meitei or Kuki, have come out to express their confidence in him,” Congress general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal told The Hindu.
“They see Rahul ji as a leader who can unify the communities,” Mr. Venugopal, one of the main organisers of the yatra, added.
Senior leader Jairam Ramesh spoke about how several civil society organisations had met Mr. Gandhi over the past two days.
“The civil society organisations told Rahul ji that in the Budget session of Parliament the Congress and he [Prime Minister Narendra Modi] should come to Manipur before the 2024 Lok Sabha election,” Mr. Ramesh told reporters.
Mr. Ramesh said during their earlier visits to the State, they would refer to these organisations as Manipuri organisations but now they are now being referred to community organisations. “That is the difference between. All of them want peace,” he added.
But the road to peace in Manipur was as fragile as the under-construction road to Kohima, that was mostly broken down.
“This is National Highway 29. Just look at its state. Prime Minister Modi ji and [Union Minister for Road Transport Highways] Nitin Gadkari make tall claims about expressways and super expressways. But here there is no road at all, only pebbles and potholes,” Mr. Ramesh said on Tuesday as the yatra started its onward journey on day three.
