Irom's wedding backers threatened
Sharmila and her British boyfriend Desmond have submitted their papers for their marriage at the sub-registrar office in Kodaikanal on July 12.
Madurai: Manipur rights activist. Irom Sharmila is puzzled over some people opposing her marriage to her good friend and fiancé in Kodaikanal.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a meeting organised by ‘Left Side Media’ to express solidarity with the documentary film maker Divya Bharathi at Madurai on Wednesday, she said that people who have given their names as witnesses at the taluk office for her marriage scheduled for August 16, were being threatened.
Sharmila and her British boyfriend Desmond Coutinho have submitted their papers for their marriage at the sub-registrar office in Kodaikanal on July 12.
“I don’t understand why some people are interfering in my personal life,” said Sharmila. However, she added th at so far she had not personally received any threat from anybody.
“But I might receive threats from the government because of supporting Divya Bharathi,” she said. Stating she was not fearing for her life, Sharmila said, “We all are mortal, but all I want to do is to serve humanity,” she said.
The right activist further said that when she had left Manipur, she thought she had left behind 'these vicious tactics' made legal by the AFSPA (Armed Forces Special Powers Act), but now she was disturbed by human rights violations in Tamil Nadu.
Though the Babasaheb Ambedkar had safeguarded freedom of speech and ‘Prohibition of Employment as Manual scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act 2013’ was introduced by the government, the authorities were not taking steps to eradicate manual scavenging, she said, adding, instead the government and others were threatening the film maker Divya when she highlighted the issue through her documentary film ‘Kakkoos’.
“The reaction of the government was to ban the film and arrest the director on trumped up charges.” Stating she was writing a long poem which she would title as ‘Kakkoos’, Sharmila invited Divya for her wedding and expressed support to her.
“At the wedding I can’t think of any finer garland than ending of caste slavery,” the Manipuri activist mused.