Opposition MPs’ Manipur visit Live Updates: Clashes have damaged India’s image, says Adhir Chowdhury as INDIA alliance delegation reaches state
Opposition MPs’ Manipur visit Live Updates: As the 21-member multi-party delegation of MPs of the Opposition’s Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) alliance reached Imphal, senior Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury made it clear that they weren’t in the state to do politics as the ethnic conflict in Manipur has damaged India’s image. “We have come here to meet victims of ethnic clashes and understand the problem. We want the end of violence and the restoration of peace at the earliest… the entire world is watching what is going on in Manipur,” he said.
What is the BJP’s reaction? Leaders of the ruling BJP have hit out at the visit, calling it a mere show-off and political tourism. “When Manipur used to remain shut for months, they had not spoken a word. When the delegation returns from Manipur, the members of the team will not allow Parliament to function. I request Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury to bring the same delegation to West Bengal, where atrocities are happening against women,” Union Minister Anurag Thakur said. BJP MP from Delhi Manoj Tiwari, too, reiterated similar points, calling the visit nothing but “political tourism”.
Why are the Oppn leaders in Manipur? Manipur has been rocked by ethnic violence since early May, leading to the death of over 140 people. The delegation aims to mount pressure on the government seeking a statement from Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Parliament. The visit also comes ahead of the much-awaited discussion in the Lok Sabha on a no-confidence motion against the Centre.
A team comprising Congress' deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi and others, went to visit a relief camp at Don Bosco School in Churachandpur today.
Speaking to the media, Gogoi said, "We have visited a total of 4 relief camps, 2 in Churachandpur, 1 in Imphal and 1 in Moirang. Everyone wants peace and everyone wants to build their lives. We will meet with our second team and share our experiences and tomorrow we will be meeting the Governor. We have come to Manipur to understand the expectations of the people and we will reflect that in Parliament"
"We feel that Parliament should have a discussion on this and I think too much delay has happened. The Govt has to give a roadmap and we all want to listen to the government's plan and give our suggestions," he said.
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Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Saturday called for peace in Manipur, saying the incidents the state witnessed since the outbreak of violence on May 3 are "painful".
"I have been pained by whatever inhumane incidents have happened in the recent past. We are all hurt by them. The whole society, states and the entire country should tread the path of peace. We should all make efforts for the restoration of peace," Birla said.
"These incidents are very sad and pain us all," he said when asked about the situation in Manipur. "Our behaviour should not hurt anybody. This should be our effort. As a society, it is our moral duty." Birla said the country and all the states, as well as all the social groups must walk the path of peace.
"All of us should make efforts for the restoration of peace" he said. "Hence, we call for peace from the humanity point of view." The northeastern state of Manipur has been engulfed in ethnic violence since May 3 which has claimed more than 160 lives so far. (PTI).
According to Delhi's Education Department, 138 children from Manipur have been admitted to schools in the Capital since the May 3 violence, and 290 applications are still being processed
The school bell rings after a short break and students in Class 11-A pull out their bulky physics textbook from their bags. Christina, sitting on the first bench, her hair parted into two neat French braids, has her notebook open too, ready to take notes.
Christina, 16, is among 31 students from Manipur who earlier this week joined the Government Coeducational Senior Secondary School in Delhi’s R K Puram Sector 5. As violence raged across Manipur, pitting the Meiteis in the Valley against the Kuki hill tribes and displacing hundreds of families, many sent their children to the safety of other states to ensure their schooling wasn’t disrupted. As they made the long journey out of their homes, to big cities that never slept, they moved in with older siblings or aunts and uncles.
According to Delhi’s Education Department, 138 children from Manipur have been admitted to schools in the Capital since the May 3 violence, and 290 applications are still being processed.
Chtistina, whose parents and two younger siblings are back home in Imphal, now lives with her elder brother in Delhi’s Munirka area. “I joined the school four days ago and I am surprised how welcoming everyone has been,” Christina smiles. But at the mention of her parents and siblings, Christina turns her face towards the wall and wipes her tears.
“I miss them so much,” she says as her friend Them, 17, squeezes in beside her on the bench and holds her tight. By now, Them, too, is fighting back her tears. Her family, too, is back home in Imphal and she is staying with relatives in Delhi.
Christina says she talks to her parents on the phone every day; now that broadband internet services have resumed, they do the ocassional video calls too.
The Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF), an umbrella group of tribals in Manipur, on Saturday wrote a letter to opposition alliance INDIA, seeking its support for their demand of a separate administration and implementation of President's rule in the violence-hit state.
Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur's population and live mostly in the Imphal valley, while tribals, which include Nagas and Kukis, constitute 40 per cent and reside mostly in the hill districts.
A video clip of sexual assault on two women by a mob in Manipur on May 4 went viral on social media platforms earlier this month resulting in a massive uproar across the country on crimes allegedly being committed in the northeastern state.
Meeting the mother of one of the victims today in Manipur, DMK leader Kanimozhi said, " “They want justice, what will they want? It is so sad to see a woman whose daughter was harassed and raped and she lost her husband and son on the same day."
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"We fervently appeal to the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) to take up our cause and apprise the nation about our plight.
"We implore you to help us survive this onslaught by supporting our demand for a separate administration from Manipur and to urge the central government to introduce President rule immediately in Manipur to end the violence," the ITLF said in its two-page letter to the opposition parties. (PTI)
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