Peace Committee set up in Manipur in attempt to bring back normalcy

A peace committee has been set up in Manipur to facilitate the peacemaking process in the violence-ravaged state.

The entire state has been in the throes of deadly violence for over a month now. The Centre has deployed forces in an effort to bring the situation under control.

The Centre constituted the committee under the chairpersonship of the State Governor to foster peace among various ethnic groups, the Home Ministry said in a statement on June 10.


The committee has the Chief Minister, a few Ministers of the Manipur government, Members of Parliament, MLAs and leaders from different political parties as members.

There also are former civil servants, educationists, litterateurs, artists, social workers and representatives of different ethnic groups, news agencies reported.

The mandate of the Committee includes "facilitating peaceful dialogue and negotiations between conflicting parties and groups".

"The committee should strengthen social cohesiveness, mutual understanding and facilitate cordial communication between various ethnic groups," the govt statement said.

A few days earlier, Home minister Amit Shah had announced the formation of the peace committee when he visited the state to take stock of the situation.

The northeastern state saw violence erupt on May 3 following a rally organized by the All Tribals Students Union (ATSU) to protest against the demand for the inclusion of Meitei/Meitei in the Scheduled Tribe (ST) category.

The march was held following an April 19 Manipur High Court directive.