Questioning why Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not travelled to Manipur until now, the Congress on October 24 alleged that Mr. Modi “abandoned” the State at a time when his intervention and outreach were needed the most.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh, in a post on X, said it is the 175th day since Manipur erupted and social harmony was devastated. But five questions continue to be asked by the people of Manipur and by all those who want the process of reconciliation and trust-building to gather momentum.
“The people of Manipur and the entire northeast are closely watching how the Prime Minister has abandoned the State of Manipur at a time when his intervention and outreach were needed the most. He cannot escape accountability and responsibility by completely ignoring the crisis,” Mr. Ramesh said.
The Congress leader asked why the Prime Minister has not met the Chief Minister of Manipur and elected MLAs of the State, most of whom belong to his party or are its allies.
Mr. Ramesh also asked why the Union Minister of State of External Affairs, representing Manipur (Inner) in Lok Sabha, has not been able to meet the Prime Minister. He also claimed that Mr. Modi has not spoken about the State publicly for more than 4-5 minutes.
“Why has the PM, who loves to travel at the drop of a hat, not seen it fit to spend even a few hours in Manipur to show his concern,” he asked.
The Congress leader also asked why Chief Minister N. Biren Singh is still allowed to continue despite being “thoroughly discredited across sections of Manipur’s society”.
