Manipur CM apologies for for ethnic conflict, urges all to ‘start afresh’

Biren Singh says there has been relative peace in the State in the last three months, which gives him hope that normalcy will be restored in the new year

Imphal: Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Tuesday apologised for the ethnic conflict in the State which claimed over 250 lives and rendered thousands homeless and appealed to all communities to forget and forgive past mistakes and start afresh. Addressing reporters here, Singh said that there has been relative peace in the State in the last three months, which gives him hope that normalcy will be restored in the new year.

“I want to say sorry for what happened in the State. Many people lost their loved ones and many had to leave their homes. I regret and want to apologise. But after seeing relative peace in the last 3-4 months, I hope that normalcy will be restored in the coming year. Whatever happened has happened… I want to appeal to all communities to forgive and forget our past mistakes and start life afresh by living together in a peaceful and prosperous Manipur,” he said.

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The Congress asked why can’t Prime Minister Narendra Modi go to the northeastern state and do the same even though he travels across the country and the world. In a post on X, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the people of Manipur cannot understand their neglect by the prime minister, whom he accused of deliberately avoiding a visit to the northeastern state.

Responding to Ramesh’s post on microblogging site, Singh accused the Congress of indulging in politics in his apology to the people of the state over ethnic conflict and asserted that his statement was a “sincere act of expressing grief” for the citizens who have been displaced and have become homeless. He also alleged that Manipur is “in turmoil because of the past sins committed by the Congress”.

 

Everyone, including yourself, is aware that Manipur is in turmoil today because of the past sins committed by the Congress, such as the repeated settlement of Burmese refugees in Manipur and the signing of the SoO Agreement with Myanmar-based militants in the state, spearheaded… https://t.co/A0X9urZ7M6

— N. Biren Singh (@NBirenSingh) December 31, 2024

Singh, in the post on X, said, “The apology I extended today was a sincere act of expressing my grief for the people who have been left displaced and become homeless. As a chief minister, it was an appeal to forgive and forget what had happened. However, you brought politics into it.” The Chief Minister also said firing incidents have declined in the State over the last 20 months since the ethnic conflict began in May 2023.

“From May to October 2023, 408 firing incidents were reported. From November 2023 to April 2024, there were 345 firing incidents, whereas from May this year till now, 112 firing incidents were reported,” he said. Of all the looted weapons, 3,112 have been recovered and 2,511 explosives have been seized during the period, he said. The chief minister also said that 625 people have been arrested and 12,247 FIRs registered so far.