IMPHAL, Aug 17: The support rendered by some organisations and individuals regarding the demand raised by a single community for creation of Sadar Hills as a full fledged district without fully knowing the background and ground reality is only to incite communal disharmony amongst the hills people. The State Govt. should not act upon such pressure which has the potential to disturb the peaceful atmosphere and in the event of any untoward incident occur those people should bear full responsibilities, said a statement of the Zeliangrong Baudi signed by Gaingamlung Pamei .
It has further stated that the state govt. should first comply with the directive of the union home minister, govt. of India dated May 14, 1990 regarding the matter to merge the Zeliangrong inhabited areas of Senapati and Churachandpur district to Tamenglong district instead of attempting to declare Sadar Hills as a full fledged district.
The said direction of the union home minister was following the Zeliangrong people persistent demand for merger of Zeliangrong areas since 1933 when Zeliangrong people were divided and scattered by the creation of the Sadar Sub-Division out of the North West Sub-Division, it added.
The Zeliangrong villages about 50 in numbers are presently located in Senapati district which include those villages of Sadar Hills and about 20 in Churachandpur district and this fact should not be taken lightly by the state govt. The Govt. of India after knowing well all these facts had directed the state govt to merge and consolidate Zeliangrong people in Tamenglong district.
The Deputy Commissioners of Senapati, Churachandpur and Tamenglong districts following the direction of the govt. of India had already submitted necessary reports to the state govt. in this regard but this has been left in the dark till date, it has further alleges.
The agitation of a single community demonstrated in some areas of Sadar Hills covering only about 20 km distance on the stretch of N.H. 39 without the participation, cooperation and support from other communities should not be considered as people movement, it charged.
The state govt’s helplessness and unability to control the situation on such short distance speaks volume regarding the agitation. The Govt. should know that the maximum area of land are covered by Zeliangrong people and other Naga communities in Sadar Hills and if conceded to the demand of the agitators without the consent of the Zeliangrong people and other Naga communities living in Sadar Hills will be a grave mistake and construed it as preplanned with the agitators, it has maintained.
The Zeliangrong people have already expressed strong opposition to the creation of Sadar Hills or any district by slicing off parts of Zeliangrong land, it has further added.
The Zeliangrong Youth Front (ZYF) strongly opposed some organisations propagation for creation of Sadar Hills district for the purpose and on the pretext of administrative convenient. “If at all for administrative purposes, what is the intention and why Jiribam, which is situated after covering more than 200km distance within Tamenglong district is administered by Imphal East District?”, the statement further retorted. The State Govt. should know that any immature decision would be a wrong tick which may lead to explosion of communal disharmony. The Zeliangrong Youth Front (ZYF) as already done in the past is ready to contribute maximum for the cause of protection of our ancestral land, it added.
Ethnicised delimitation process would lead to the end of Manipur .
For ur kind information Ukhrul Dist and Tamenglong district has hundreds of KUKI villages.The fact that the respective headquarters are located in a Naga dominated town does not mean it is a Kacha Naga district just as Manipur does not belong to Meitei alone,Meghalay to Khasis alone,or Assam to Assamese alone. Please do not communalise the issue as our kuki brothers never demanded merger of kuki areas of Ukhrul and tamenglong with Sadar Hills.Read history and i believe u would support the present agitation and please be reminded it is purely for administrative convenience.If things were to move as per your views ,i suppose Meitei brothers also would be justified in demanding merger of Silchar area and parts of Tripura with Manipur,Manipuri basti of Guwahati with Manipur.