Fast, marriage plan eroded Irom’s support?
imphal — The roller coaster ride of human rights activist Irom Sharmila Chanu continues after her maiden foray into electoral politics in her native state of Manipur proved a damp squib.
An ordinary girl staying in state capital Imphal, Sharmila was catapulted to international limelight when she bagan her fast-unto-death on November 4, 2000, to demand the repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958, that many consider draconian. For the next 16 years, she was force fed on a drip.
National and international recognition for her fight against the law soon followed, earning her the “Iron Lady of Manipur” moniker.
South Korea honoured her with its highest civilian award.
All through her much-publicised fight against the AFSPA, national and state politicians appealed to her to give up her fast and offered her a role in politics. However, she stood her ground and continued her struggle with grit and determination.
The anti-climax to her stoic struggle came after she decided to end her indefinite fast on August 9, 2016, and expressed her wish to contest the 2017 assembly elections so as to ride to power and oversee the revocation of AFSPA. The decision was received with mixed feelings.
She also announced in February 2017 her plan to get married and that seems to have further alienated her supporters, including women.
It was reported in the media that Desmond Coutinho, an NRI originally from Goa, and Sharmila were in love for a long time. On one occasion, Coutinho was beaten up by angry women activists in the court premises after he held Sharmila’s hand inside the courtroom.
“In Manipur, this is socially not acceptable,” a woman activist had said at the time. Since then, Coutinho had stopped coming to Imphal, but Sharmila’s supporters seemed to disapprove of her plan to give up her struggle.
There were media reports that her changed strategy to enter electoral politics did not go down well with many activists.
Members of Sharmila Kanba Lup, a pressure group named after her, flayed her for what it termed “abandoning the cause”. The group was later dissolved.
Her women supporters — who had set up a Save Sharmila Group — stopped extending her support.
The feisty activist polled less than 100 votes in the two constituencies she contested from, finally proving that she was not cut out for politics. —