KOHIMA – Condemning the May 4 incident in Manipur where two tribal women were paraded naked and their modesty outraged by a mob, Naga People's Front (NPF) MP Dr. Lorho S Pfoze on Friday said that Chief Minister N Biren Singh should step down.
"It is very unfortunate that the violence in Manipur has gone beyond our imagination," the Lok Sabha MP from outer Manipur told Eastern Mirror and said that in light of the gravity of the situation, the chief minister should consider stepping down on moral ground.
[bsa_pro_ad_space id=1]The recommendation for Biren Singh to step down came after discussions with key leaders from both houses of the Parliament, the Opposition as well as MLAs and coalition partners, it was informed.
"He (chief minister) should take an appropriate decision and take responsibility to step down," the MP said.
Stating that the “horrific crime” has brought "shame to the whole state of Manipur," the MP said that law and order enforcement agencies should be equally held responsible.
The MP raised serious questions about the role of the state law and order enforcement agencies, suspecting that they were possibly aware of the incident when it happened.
Pfoze urged for a thorough investigation to identify and hold accountable all those responsible, including police personnel who failed to intervene during the incident.
"I was made to understand that the state police forces were also around that particular period of time when the incident was taking place," he said.
Pfoze also condemned the incident where a Naga woman was beheaded recently in Manipur.
He expressed sadness that miscreants are resorting to killing people in one of the most terrifying ways by going back to the headhunting days.
Pfoze also expressed anguish over the burning of religious institutions and houses and added that victims were undergoing unprecedented sufferings "which is never expected of modern times."
While hoping that sense would prevail among the people, he asserted that the government should take up "harsh, appropriate and firm steps" to prevent further chilling incidents.
"If we are lenient, more social evils would be spread which would be of great danger for both our state and even the country at large," he said.
On the Prime Minister's response made to the press on Thursday after the first monsoon session of the Parliament, Pfoze expressed disappointment that it took 80 days for Narendra Modi to address the issue of Manipur violence.
While Modi assured action against the perpetrators, Pfoze felt that the Prime Minister's statement only focused on a single incident and failed to address the overall situation in Manipur.