Manipur Update - Center forms a 51 member peace panel

Following the four-day visit (May 29 to June 1) to Manipur by Home Minister Amit Shah, a peace panel comprising a 51-member pool was formed considering a series of measures which also included the judicial probe panel. This panel was announced on 10th June and will be led by the Governor of Manipur Anusuiya Uikey, Chief Minister N Biren Singh and a couple of other state MPs and MLAs of distinct political parties.

The panel includes 51 members, of which the majority of the members are from the Meitei community, who are 25 in number. Whereas 11 belong to the Kuki community and 10 are from the Naga community. This panel also includes a couple of Muslim and Nepali representatives. The primary duty of the members of this peace panel is to maintain and coordinate with the safety of the civilians of the state, and to report any actions that will instigate violence.

Although this is seen as a precautionary measure to control violent breakouts in Manipur, the members of this panel on Sunday said that their consent to be a part of such a panel was not asked prior. They also mentioned that the Central government should actively play a role in this issue, and not completely hand it over to the state government and its authorities.