Editor,
By no stretch of imagination can the Mawlai rally of August 25 be compared to the failed Tiananmen Square uprising in China. While the Chinese protest, initiated by a few freedom and democracy-loving youth, which was promptly put down by the army killing them all on the spot, the Mawlai protest was democratic, peaceful and a non-violent public outrage against cold blooded murder by police. The Mawlai rally where men, women, old and young participated, stands out for two reasons: The choice of location and expression of open solidarity with the slain leader Cheristerfield Thangkhiew and the banned organisation HNLC. By doing so, the people of Mawlai have sent a couple of messages to the government. First, it was a well thought out stratagem to have organised the rally at the national highway which brought vehicular traffic movement to a grinding halt, and kept the commercial areas in town on tenterhooks. According to me, the message is: In Mawlai, our wishes will prevail and do not try to rub us on the wrong side. The second message is: We are brave enough to defy the consequences, if any, of siding with the banned outfit.
The fact that there was no police posting at Mawlai since August 14 tells its own story of how the Government has chickened out. The Government has no moral strength to stand up after the killing of Bah Che. When the Home Minister first resigns and then reneges under pressure, it sends conflicting messages to one and all. If he had stuck to his decision, he would have salvaged some face. Be that as it may, the most disturbing trend is that law and order machinery has collapsed in Mawlai as was reflected in the rifle snatching incident and the shameful act of police running for their lives. By all means the black flag and brandishing of snatched firearms was a one-off innocuous incident. Some journalists and one political leader have seen in these developments a shadow of Kashmir. They are wide off the mark. By doing what they did, the people of Mawlai (read Meghalaya) have not necessarily endorsed HNLC’s policies and objectives. They are merely conveying to the government of the day to bring the culprits to justice or else face the Mawlai music. The bottom line is that if the policemen who led the raid are not subjected to disciplinary action for overstepping their brief, there is going to be heightened pressure in the coming days. As a peace-loving citizen, I therefore urge the Government to act tactfully and act fast and not subject the common people to further sufferings.
Yours etc.,
BR Lyngdoh,
Via email
It’s a let down by politicians
Editor,
Apropos of the report, “Move no-trust motion: Cong to NPP allies” (ST Aug 26, 2021), as a keen political observer, I am at a loss for words to express my amusement at the desperate attempt of the Congress to return to power. Yes, nobody wants to sit in the cold Opposition. It is also conceded that the Opposition should cash in on every little opportunity to catch the ruling side on the wrong foot. But I think, not being able to force the issue sums up the rudderless state of the opposition.
I have no qualms about conceding that the ruling coalition has plenty of blemishes, some quite unheard of even by Meghalaya standards. The unbelievable coal racket involving a cabinet minister and his office assistants leading to the Police Department being rid of the minister. That was a first for the State and the Opposition did not raise a heckle as was required. Later, when the Power scam broke out or the Rice scam was exposed by the media, there was no hard push for cornering the MDA Government. Why the Opposition could not press home the coal racket for making it a public issue is simply incomprehensible. Maybe, because the Opposition Congress has skeletons in its own cupboards. Those living in glass houses pelt at their own peril, don’t they?
It doesn’t surprise anyone that the Congress, instead of moving the no-trust motion themselves, is asking the ruling coalition partners to do so. That’s because Congress cannot move another no-confidence motion during the ensuing autumn session of the Assembly as the rules do not permit moving such a motion twice in six months. Congress having exercised that right in the March session has no other option but to let the coalition partners take the lead.
Yes, the MDA is on a sticky wicket over corruption and governance failure, but the alternative hardly inspires confidence. Who wants the same set of corruption-ridden political class? They say, if you shuffle the same pack of cards again and again, you will get the same results. The State actually needs a new breed of politicians willing to break the shackles of stereotypes. The million-dollar question is: Where are they?
Yours etc.,
Pynshngain Jyrwa,
Via email