By Express News Service
NEW DELHI: Criticising the Centre for not taking adequate measures to bring normalcy in Manipur, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Sunday strongly pitched for dialogues with locals to earn trust and restore peace in the state.
“There are 35 different communities. You cannot have unanimity. You cannot have one view but you can have consensus. …It is through consensus, only through listening to everybody and being sensitive that you can really restore trust. It is going to be a long process. It is not going to happen in weeks. It may take months, maybe years, but we have to start the process,” said Ramesh.
He was speaking at the National Convention on Peace in Manipur held in New Delhi, in which leaders of 10 “like-minded” political parties from Manipur also participated. Communist Party of India-Marxist’s general secretary Sitaram Yechury, Communist Party of India’s D Raja, former Manipur chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh attended the event, along with representatives of Aam Aadmi Party, Janata Dal (United), All India Forward Bloc, Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party and Revolutionary Socialist Party.
He said that two fundamental steps need to be taken: one, disarm all armed groups ruthlessly and two, begin the process of creating an atmosphere of trust and reconciliation.
“Listen to people. Kukis have fear. Meiteis have fear. The Nagas have their own concerns. Minorities have their views. Listen to all of them. If you respond to them, you can create an atmosphere of trust and restore peace. Ibobi Singh took 10 years to restore some semblance of order and then the process of development was started,” said Ramesh.
NEW DELHI: Criticising the Centre for not taking adequate measures to bring normalcy in Manipur, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Sunday strongly pitched for dialogues with locals to earn trust and restore peace in the state.
“There are 35 different communities. You cannot have unanimity. You cannot have one view but you can have consensus. …It is through consensus, only through listening to everybody and being sensitive that you can really restore trust. It is going to be a long process. It is not going to happen in weeks. It may take months, maybe years, but we have to start the process,” said Ramesh.
He was speaking at the National Convention on Peace in Manipur held in New Delhi, in which leaders of 10 “like-minded” political parties from Manipur also participated. Communist Party of India-Marxist’s general secretary Sitaram Yechury, Communist Party of India’s D Raja, former Manipur chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh attended the event, along with representatives of Aam Aadmi Party, Janata Dal (United), All India Forward Bloc, Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party and Revolutionary Socialist Party.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });
He said that two fundamental steps need to be taken: one, disarm all armed groups ruthlessly and two, begin the process of creating an atmosphere of trust and reconciliation.
“Listen to people. Kukis have fear. Meiteis have fear. The Nagas have their own concerns. Minorities have their views. Listen to all of them. If you respond to them, you can create an atmosphere of trust and restore peace. Ibobi Singh took 10 years to restore some semblance of order and then the process of development was started,” said Ramesh.
