If proof was needed of the hollowness, ineptness and utter uselessness of the so-called “double engine sarkar” which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) eulogises and hard-sells to gullible voters ahead of state elections, then a long hard look at the stinking mess in Manipur will suffice.

Manipur, which literally means the land of jewels, fulfils the basis criterion of “double engine” rule as there is a BJP government in the Centre as well as in the state. But between them they have miserably failed to extinguish the fires destroying the province for four long months.

The pathetic condition of Manipur since May beginning should be an eye-opener for the whole country which must realise once and for all that “double engine” governance is a recipe for the state’s downfall and destruction rather than faster growth and development. It’s an important lesson to be learnt, particularly as elections are due in several states before the parliamentary polls in May 2024 and the BJP is bound to use “double engine sarkar” as a bait to hook voters. 

Make no mistake about it: there is a civil war raging between Christian Kuki tribespeople who comprise as little as 18% of the population and the dominant Hindu Meitei plainspeople accounting for a whopping 53% — backed by the BJP state government machinery, especially the police. The killings haven’t stopped and the death toll which had crossed 200 last month is steadily rising with nine more murders in a span of three days.

The administration simply refuses to provide updated official casualty figures. But, importantly, nobody denies that two-thirds of the dead are Kukis. Moreover, 250 churches have been destroyed, underlining the religious character of the state-backed violence. 

A one-day-long session of the state legislative assembly was convened on August 29 to meet a Constitutional obligation, but it lasted for barely 11 minutes and was boycotted by Kuki MLAs who feared for their lives in the Meitei-dominated state capital, Imphal. There is no political will to come to grips with the lawlessness as it is deepening the Hindu-Christian divide which will ultimately pay the BJP electoral dividends.

Chief Minister Biren Singh, who is a Hindu Meitei and a central figure in the anti-Christian violence, bears a stark resemblance to Roman emperor Nero. Singh has blood on his hands but flashed a triumphant smile as Home Minister Amit Shah, no less, gave him a clean chit in Parliament and ruled out his removal, citing his cooperation with the Centre in the maintenance of law and order; Shah obviously thinks that Singh is a prized BJP asset and disbelieves the widely-held perception that Singh is the biggest obstacle in the path of peace and normalcy.

Now compare and contrast Shah’s blind faith in Singh with what a highly decorated retired Manipuri lieutenant general of the Indian army, L Nishikanta Singh, an Imphal resident has to say. “It appears Manipur has been left to stew in its own juice. Life and property can be destroyed anytime by anyone just like in Libya, Lebanon, Nigeria, Syria, etc. Is anyone listening?”

Retired army chief Ved Prakash Malik immediately characterised Singh’s remarks as an “extraordinarily sad call”, wrote that “law and order situation in Manipur needs urgent attention at the highest level” and tagged Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and, of course, Shah. But the net result of the ex-LG and ex-army chief’s words was a big fat zero. The big three and their man in Imphal — the CM — shrugged off the military officers’ criticism. No one took a single step to redeem the situation — and that’s the beauty of “double engine sarkar”, my friend!

I can’t help but salute another brave and distinguished Indian for calling a spade a spade. Former Union Home Secretary G K Pillai has openly described the situation in Manipur in a media interview as unheard of in post-Independence India, and accused the BJP governments in New Delhi and Imphal of pursuing a sectarian strategy and purposely taking the side of Hindu Meiteis in the strife-torn state.

According to Pillai, the Central and state BJP governments gave precedence to political issues over Constitutional aspects — which is a mild and polite way of saying that both governments coolly violated the Constitution for political gains. But he bluntly said that he had not seen such an incompetent and ineffective response to a crisis in his entire career, and cited as very disturbing the failure of the state government to recover weapons snatched from armouries by mobs. 

Pillai didn’t mince his words about the BJP leadership’s refusal to sack Biren Singh and appoint another CM. He said that had he been the Home Secretary, he would have advised the government to “dismiss” the CM, try out someone else at the helm in the state, and opt for President’s rule if that too failed. He remarked that Shah’s defence of the CM not only annoyed and offended the minority Kukis but ended up sending out a wrong signal not only to Manipur but to other BJP-ruled states as well.

Pillai didn’t spare Modi either for not visiting Manipur till date. According to him, Modi should have stepped in after the Home Minister’s three-day visit to Manipur did not stop the killings and calm down the state. Pillai said that Modi could have visited Manipur; he could have called people across, anyway. “Just the fact that the PM was concerned would have made a tremendous difference because for the people of the northeast, the human touch is very, very critical and it would have made a tremendous impact and a big difference”, he observed. 

The unending tragedy in Manipur shows how destructive and dangerous a “double engine sarkar” can turn out to be. Voters in states going to the polls should bear this in mind when BJP campaigners advise them to elect BJP governments simply because the BJP is in power at the Centre.

The author is an independent, Pegasused reporter and commentator on foreign policy and domestic politics

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