IMPHAL, December 12: Manipur is a State whose history is laced with many watershed events but the observations of those events begin only after many years which reveal the callous indifference of successive Union governments to the State and its people, alleged Manipur Peoples`™ Party president N Sovakiran.
He was speaking at the 75th Nupi Lal celebrations. Over the years, the people of the State appear to have neglected historic events like Nupi Lal, Khongjom Day etc, he opined.
He said the allied forces and the Japanese fought big battles in Manipur during the 2nd World War in which thousands of soldiers died.
The Common Wealth War Grave Commission has established many cemeteries in various places where the Great War was fought. There is a cemetery of that war in Imphal and Kohima. Every year the war is commemorated, he observed.
The MPP president said but in the context of Manipur, Nupi Lal which occurred in 1904 and the Khongjom War fought in 1891 were commemorated only after 1974 when MPP came to power. Various National political parties never attempted to observe those historic events, he added.
Observing that the State marked the death anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, who was killed in January 30, 1948, at MG Avenue a year after his death, he said but the Nupi Lal memorial foundation stone was laid by KV Krishna Rao on December 9, 1986 only after MPP was able to send an elected representative in the parliament.
Later in 1999 when the MSCP led government came to power, the Nupi Lal memorial complex was inaugurated by ON Shrivastava, the then Governor of Manipur, he said before asking the reason of such delay in the observation of historic events pertaining to the state from the government.
When the MPP was in power, Manipuri was included in the 8th schedule in 1992, he pointed out.
Sovakiran said the party drew inspiration from the heroic tales of those ordinary women who performed extraordinary deeds in 1939 while forming the party and that the episode has always given strength to the party.
MPP is always concern about the welfare and development of the State and it will continue to strive for making the future generations not easily forget the historic events of the of Manipur, he added.
Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2014/12/mpp-president-questions-delayed-observations-of-states-historic-events/