The previous assembly session in the northeast state was held in March, According to the norms, a session must be held every six months. 

Here’s a 10-point guide on Manipur Assembly session 

1) Six of the ten MLAs from Kuki-dominated areas have already sought leave of absence from the speaker of the assembly, PTI reported. 

2) Last month, the government had recommended a session by August 21, but later revised it to August 28 on not getting a green light from the Raj Bhavan. Last week, the Chief Minister’s Office announced the assembly will reconvene on August 29.

3) The Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU) and the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) had recently denounced the convening of the session saying the present situation is not conducive for Kuki-Zo MLAs to attend.

4) In a joint statement on Sunday, both organizations said considering the complete breakdown of law and order and the failure of the state government to protect the lives of the common people and officials, convening the session “is devoid of logic and rationality”, as per PTI reports. 

5) Former Manipur chief minister and Congress leader Okram Ibobi Singh on Saturday said that the assembly session is an eyewash and not in the public interest.

6) “The agenda is going to be obituary references. In my experience, on a day when obituary references are taken up, no other business is discussed,” Okram said as quoted by PTI. 

7) “As a member of the committee, I suggested that the session be held at least for five days to discuss the unprecedented situation in the state. The opposition has just four or five members. We are not here to criticize the government, but discuss issues of public interest,” the former Manipur CM added. 

8) Union Minister B L Verma on Monday said that the situation in Manipur is “firmly under control”. 

9) Verma, who is the minister of state for the Development of the North Eastern Region, underscored that aside from the incidents in Manipur, the region has generally experienced a state of peace after 2014.

10) More than 160 people lost their lives and several hundred were injured since the ethnic clashes broke out in Manipur on May 3, after a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ was organized in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.

(With PTI inputs)

Updated: 29 Aug 2023, 09:49 AM IST