DON'T MISS
An exclusive interview with Dr Nara
Dr Moirangthem Nara is the candidate of Communist Party of India (CPI) contesting the 16th Lok Sabha election in Inner Manipur Parliamentary Constituency. He is 63 years old and he is the son of (late) Moirangthem Ton of Tentha Khongbal in Thoubal district.
Dr Nara had been an MLA from Wangjing-Tentha A/C and he was also the Minister of Art & Culture in the Congress-led Secular Progressive Front (SPF)-I Manipur Government. He had also contested the last Lok Sabha election on CPI ticket.
HL: How do you feel being a common candidate of Left and Secular Alliance (LSA) besides getting support from Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) in the upcoming Lok Sabha election?
Nara: Manipur was an independent state inhabited by different communities in peace and harmony. However, it became a troubled state after its merger with the India Union in 1949. The Congress has been ruling India most of the time and they have done nothing good for the State. In order to teach the Congress a good lesson this time, various political parties and people belonging to different communities have supported me in this Lok Sabha election.
HL: You were defeated by the Congress candidate by a narrow margin in the previous Lok Sabha election. But, this time you are being supported by various political parties. Are you confident of winning the election?
Nara: I am quite confident of winning this election. The 16th Lok Sabha election is very important. It is a well-known fact that the sitting Congress MPs of the State have been quite silent and never raised the State’s issues in the Parliament. So, the electorates will obviously want a change this time.
HL: How do you feel contesting the Lok Sabha election against the Congress which has strength of 47 MLAs in the State Assembly?
Nara: There is nothing to fear about the Congress MLAs. All of them were elected by the minority voters. Even some Congressmen will surely vote against their own party candidates. The people of the State will definitely acknowledge the crucial roles played by the CPI and its allies in addressing the core issues of the State.
HL: In your election manifesto, you promise to address several core issues of the State and also develop the State’s economy, education, tourism and health sector. But, things like improvement of communication technology, especially the internet in the State are not found in the manifesto. What is your comment on this?
Nara: The state of affairs in Manipur is very disappointing. The people are deprived even of their basic amenities like water and power. There is need for improvement of IT infrastructures, and enhance internet speed and power supply in the State to help the people in terms of business, education, media and other fields.
HL: Kindly highlight your election manifesto – things you pledge to do after getting elected.
Nara: There are altogether 25 points in my election manifesto. They are implementation of proper land reforms in the State, distribution of excess land to landless people, housing scheme for homeless people, providing adequate wages for agricultural labourers, protection of arable land, pension scheme for farmers, establishment of industries for employment generation, nationalization of mineral and oil resources, augmentation in tax collection, providing 35 kg of rice at Rs. 2 per kg to every household, prevention of communal forces, more budgetary allocation for education and health sectors, non-privatization of public enterprises, effective implementation of Right to Education (RTE) Act, curbing corruption, empowerment of women and gender equality in every field, protection of workers’ rights, implementation of sovereign foreign policy, prevention of terrorism activities, reformation of jails, protection of children’s rights, ensuring freedom of press, resolving Indo-Myanmar bordering fencing row, revocation of Disturbed Area Status from whole State, protection of State’s territorial integrity, initiating peace talks with all underground outfits, protection of languages and identity of all communities, railway connectivity up to Imphal, providing adequate security along the National Highways, implementation of Inner Line Permit System, development for minorities, formulation of youth policy, strengthening of sports movement, setting up separate Directorate for Scheduled Castes, protection of cultural identity of every tribe, formulation of land use policy and transparent utilization of local area development fund.