Assam, Manipur CMs hold meetings in Imphal over violence

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Saturday held a series of meetings in Imphal with his Manipur counterpart N. Biren Singh and various other bodies and civil society organisations about the ethnic violence in the state that has so far killed 105 people and injured over 320 others since it first broke out on May 3.

Sarma, who is also the Convenor of BJP-led North-East Democratic Alliance (NEDA), arrived in Manipur earlier on Saturday on a day-long visit.

He is also scheduled to hold separate meetings with MLAs and different ethnic groups at a hotel in Imphal.

There was however, no immediate information on the outcome of the meetings.

Also on Saturday, the Central government announced that it has constituted a Peace Committee with Manipur Governor Anusuiya Uikey as the Chairperson in an effort to bring normalcy to the violence-hit state.

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said said that besides the Governor, the Committee will also include Chief Minister N. Biren Singh, few state Ministers, MPs, MLAs, leaders from different political parties, former civil servants, educationists, litterateurs, artists, social workers and representatives of different ethnic groups.

The MHA said that the mandate of the Committee will be to facilitate the peacemaking process among various ethnic groups of the state, including peaceful dialogue and negotiations between conflicting parties or groups.

"The Committee should strengthen social cohesiveness, mutual understanding and facilitate cordial communication between various ethnic groups," it added.

While addressing a press conference in Manipur on June 1, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had announced that a Peace Committee under Governor Uikey will be set up which will have representatives of all political parties, besides representatives from the ethnic communities and social organisations.

Shah had visited Manipur from May 29 to June 1.

Meanwhile, a three-member Commission of Inquiry, set up by the MHA on June 4 to probe the violence, arrived in Imphal on Friday.

A senior Manipur Home Department official told IANS that the Commission under the chairmanship of the Gauhati High Court's former Chief Justice Ajai Lamba would soon start their inquiry.

The MH asked the probe panel to submit its report to the Central government as soon as possible but not later than six months from the date of its first sitting.

Former IAS officer Himanshu Shekhar Das and retired IPS officer Aloka Prabhakar are the other two members of the Commission.

The panel would probe the causes and spread of the violence and riots targeting members of different communities; the sequence of events leading to, and all the facts related to the strife; whether there were any lapses or dereliction of duty in this regard on the part of any of the responsible authorities and individuals; the adequacy of the administrative measures taken to prevent; and to deal with the violence and riots.