Perhaps, he was not properly briefed about the situation on the ground in Manipur by his loyal lieutenants or that he has not made up his mind on what to say given the complexity of the problem here.
Previously we said that perhaps he is not happy with the way things are being handled in the state or maybe he did not want to give a handle to the opposition for not invoking Article 356 (President’s Rule) in the state or there are some other considerations like the geo-political dimension of the present unrest in the state. Surely, he must have had his reasons.
Well, there is Article 355 already in action but not officially as law and order had been taken over by a Security Advisor fingered by Centre and appointed by the state government.
The frustrations of the chief minister in matters of security are much evident in his body language during interactions with the media. Even he has chosen to seldom address the media while totally shirking his presence in the social media, which he is so fond of.
As to the supreme leader sitting in New Delhi, one has to understand that he is not a talkative person and he always chooses his words carefully lest someone misunderstands him. That is the very reason he has chosen not to address a press conference all through his career as the top executive of the country, except for some interviews to a selected few who had been vetted over and over again. He does not take along hordes of reporters in his plane like most head of states during foreign trips except for those in the official media.
There was no mention of the Manipur crisis in his monthly thought this Sunday and this is the second time since riots broke out in the state that he had chosen to maintain ‘Mounabarta’ on Manipur crisis in his official musings. Perhaps, his thoughts are occupied by the extreme devastation of Cyclone Biparajoy in his home state. There also, he sent his chief trouble-shooter to assess the situation although he himself went to Odisha during the train tragedy while the rising death toll in Manipur was of little concern.
We had asked, how many more lives it would take to break his silence. Everyone is asking the same question as to why he is not speaking or maintaining his silence on the Manipur question. Not only the Congress, but parties like the Trinamool Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party is also asking.
Yet, if we recollect our thoughts we would see that this is not the first time that he is maintaining a stoic silence. He had remained strangely silent in the past on certain selected incidents involving radical elements within his party. He must have had his own reasons. His language of silence is so powerful and pervasive that sometimes we are made to feel guilty as to why we are questioning his silence.
Several political leaders including his own party MLAs had gone to Delhi to meet him to plead with him or apprise him on the evolving situation in the state. Several other groups including women leaders are also camping there.
Yet, it is not certain whether he would grant them an audience or not. Somehow, we must also learn to be patient given his distractions with obsession over foreign trips and image building in the international scenario notwithstanding the fact that Myanmarese illegals are involved in the present turmoil in the state.
Perhaps, it is because he is caught in a ‘Abhimanyu’ like situation where he is unable to find his way out of the ‘Chakravyuh’ or complexity called Manipur. Even Chanakya would have lost his wits while looking to extricate oneself from the Manipur maze. So, are we at fault for blaming him over his silence?
Read More: IFP Editorial
