The People’s Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK) has urged the residents of Kangleipak to refrain from celebrating Manipur Statehood Day on January 21, arguing that the state’s integration into the Indian Union was achieved through coercion and subsequent suppression of its political and cultural identity. In a statement issued by Laibaak Ngaakpa Luwang, PREPAK criticized the presentation of January 21, 1972, as a liberation milestone, contending that it marks the ongoing annexation of Kangleipak.
The party claims that Kangleipak, which was under British protection, did not willingly merge with India after 1947, citing the coerced signing of the Merger Agreement by Maharaja Bodhachandra in 1949 as evidence of duress. Since gaining statehood, PREPAK argues that the government has perpetuated a false narrative through Statehood Day celebrations, which they deem disrespectful to the territory’s history and identity.
PREPAK asserts that post-British colonial practices have continued, with India suppressing the aspirations of smaller nations like Kangleipak, which they describe as an Asiatic sovereign state. They accuse India of systematically eroding Kangleipak’s political identity and traditional governance, while also imposing Indianization across various social and cultural dimensions, leading to the marginalization of indigenous practices.
Furthermore, PREPAK highlights the economic exploitation and the deprivation of local resources under central governance, claiming this has resulted in poverty and dependency for the Kangleipak population. They also critique the education system introduced post-annexation, arguing it disconnects youth from their cultural roots.
The party chastises the electoral system as a facade of democracy that undermines social cohesion and highlights that development projects have failed to benefit the local populace, leading to a disconnect between official narratives of progress and the actual lived experience of the people. In light of these grievances, PREPAK once again called on the public to boycott the upcoming 54th anniversary of Statehood Day, framing it as an attempt to deceive the residents of Kangleipak regarding the historical injustices they have faced.