Manipur violence: On Sunday, a delegation of 20 Members of Parliament from 16 parties will visit clashes-hit Manipur to have an “on-the-spot assessment” of the ground situation. The 20 MPs will be from the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA).
Speaking about the visit to Manipur, Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said, “We are going there not to raise political issues but to understand the pain of the people of Manipur. We have been appealing to the government to find a solution to the sensitive situation which has emerged in Manipur. It is not a law & order situation but there is communal violence there. It is also affecting its neighbouring states. The government has not fulfilled its responsibility. We are going to assess the real situation on the ground in Manipur”.
The Opposition alliance has protested in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha during the monsoon session of Parliament over their demand for a detailed discussion on the situation in Manipur and a statement from Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
They are upset that why the Prime Minister has remained silent on this issue which turned extremely bitter and violent in May this year. More than hundreds of people have died in the tiny northeastern state and thousands of people have been displaced.
The clashes broke out in Manipur after a “Tribal Solidarity March” was organised in the hill districts on May 3 to protest against the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status. Hundreds of people have lost their lives and many have been injured in the violence.
The clashes were preceded by tension over the eviction of Kuki villagers from reserve forest land, which led to a series of smaller agitations.
Meiteis account for about 53% of Manipur’s population and live mostly in the Imphal valley. Tribals, including Nagas and Kukis, account for another 40% of the population and reside in the hill districts.
INDIA ALLIANCE IN MANIPUR FOR TWO DAYS
A delegation of 20 INDIA bloc MPs will pay a two-day visit to Manipur beginning Saturday to assess the ground situation. The twenty member MPs delegation having MPs from both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha includes Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Gaurav Gogoi, Rajiv Ranjan Lalan Singh, Sushmita Dev, Kanimozhi Karunanidhi, Sandosh Kumar, AA Rahim, Prof Manoj Kumar Jha, Javed Ali Khan, Mahua Maji, PP Mohammed Faizal, Aneel Prasad Hegde, ET Mohammed Basheer, NK Premachandran, Sushil Gupta, Arvind Sawant, D Ravikumar, Thiru Thol Thirumavalavan, Jayant Singh and Phulo Devi Netam.
The opposition bloc had written to Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh, who allowed the delegation to visit the state.
The delegation would be meeting Manipur Governor Anusuiya Uikey on Sunday morning, Hussain said.
The Congress leader said the MPs have sought to use helicopters there and if allowed, they will be able to visit the far-flung areas of Churachandpur, where fresh violence has taken place.
Congress leader Naseer Hussain alleged that massacres, violence, and rapes are happening in Manipur for the last 86 days.
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Updated: 29 Jul 2023, 08:59 AM IST