The battle of wits continues. One day after Deputy Chief Minister Gaikhangam came out with his ‘Time bomb in Framework Agreement’ gem, former MLA O Joy returned with ‘Be the detector’ snub, another gem, if one may add. Interesting it is to see the battle of wits amongst some of the veteran political leaders of the State and hence the earlier observation that if this tempo is maintained, Manipur can expect more interesting days ahead. The veteran from Langthabal Assembly Constituency was in his elements once again when he traced the history of Naga integration and recalled a pact signed between the then United Naga Integration Council and some Congress leaders of the North East on August 4, 1972 that the Congress party does not oppose Naga integration movement. Therefore it is the Congress which sowed the seeds of Naga integration thereby threatening the territorial integrity of the State, was his reasoning. It is this type of debate that one expects from seasoned political leaders and this is like a fresh breath of air. Wish that others too take a leaf out of the current debate and see how to go about against their opponents. In deciding to let O Joy respond to the Deputy Chief Minister, the BJP did the right thing, for not all have the same level of oratorial skill and it is only someone like the man from Langthabal AC who can take on the Deputy Chief Minister.
Clear that battle lines have been drawn. The Framework Agreement and the territorial integrity of the State will certainly be a major issue in the forthcoming Assembly election and so will other issues such as the deep divide between the hills and the valley over the ILPS issue. There will be other issues too such as the implementation of the National Food Security Act, the demand that the Meeteis/Meiteis be included in the ST list and those standing against this demand and other issues which will grab the attention of the people. It is on these issues that the two political parties will try to win the confidence of the people and one can certainly expect to see more debates on these issues. Here is hoping that the debates keep to the spirit of debates and not get reduced to an exercise in mud slinging and name calling. The BJP has another person in N Mangi from Kumbi AC who can rise to the occasion and come out with verbal gems to run down the opponents. The verbal duel has been interesting so far and it is hoped that the BJP and Congress will not stoop to the level of punching below the belt in the run up to the election.
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