New Delhi: A delegation of 21 Members of Parliament (MPs) of 16 opposition parties of the INDIA bloc made a two-day trip to violence-hit Manipur to assess the situation on ground.
The visit was marked by trips to relief camps and a meeting with Governor Anusuiya Uikey at the Raj Bhawan Sunday where the delegation also submitted a memorandum and shared their observations and experiences.
After the meeting, Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, addressing the media in Imphal, said the governor was equally concerned with the situation and had suggested an all-party delegation visiting the state to hold talks with all community leaders to restore peace.
Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) sought to play down the trip, calling it “political tourism” and “show off”.
Union minister Anurag Thakur was quoted by ANI as saying in Kolkata on Saturday, “This is just optics. When this I.N.D.I.A. returns from Manipur, I want to ask Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury if he supports the crimes against women in his state West Bengal. Will these 20 MPs of I.N.D.I.A. (front) give reports on Rajasthan and West Bengal as well.”
The visit assumes significance in the light of the opposition seeking to corner the NDA government on the Prime Minister’s silence on Manipur, which has witnessed ethnic clashes since 3 May.
Home Minister Amit Shah said in Rajya Sabha 25 July that the government is not afraid to hold a discussion on Manipur, but the opposition parties should first create an appropriate atmosphere in the House to hold a discussion on a sensitive issue like Manipur.
ThePrint brings the lowdown on the two-day visit of the MPs.
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The delegation
The opposition delegation had promised to visit both the hills and valley districts of Manipur.
With MPs from both the Houses of Parliament, the team comprised Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Gaurav Gogoi, K. Suresh and Phulo Devi Netam of the Congress; Rajiv Ranjan Singh and Aneel Prasad Hegde of the JD(U); Sushmita Dev from Trinamool Congress; Kanimozhi from DMK; Sandosh Kumar of the CPI; A.A. Rahim from CPI(M), Manoj Jha of RJD; Javed Ali Khan of SP; Mahua Maji of JMM; P.P. Mohammed Faizal of NCP; E.T. Mohammed Basheer of IUML; N.K. Premachandran of RSP; Sushil Gupta of AAP; Arvind Sawant of Shiv Sena (UBT); D. Ravikumar and Thiru Thol Thirumavalavan of VCK; and Jayant Singh Chaudhary of the RLD.
Media reports said the team had taken prior permission from Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh for the visit.
Visit to relief camps
There were news reports that the delegation split into two groups and visited four relief camps — 2 in Churachandpur, and 1 each in Imphal and Moirang. Later, speaking to the media, Congress MP Phulodevi Netam claimed that a victim told her she was raped in front of the police.
मणिपुर में हजारों लोग राहत कैंप में रहने को मजबूर हैं।
इन कैंपों में ठीक से खाने-पीने, महिलाओं और बच्चों की दवाई और टॉयलेट की व्यवस्था भी नहीं है।
रेप पीड़िता ने बताया कि उसके साथ दुष्कर्म पुलिस के सामने हुआ, लेकिन कोई कार्रवाई नहीं हुई।
हमारी मांग है कि वहां जल्द से जल्द… pic.twitter.com/TtFafsTGd6
— Congress (@INCIndia) July 30, 2023
“Thousands of people are forced to live in relief camps in Manipur. There isn’t proper food and drink, medicines and toilets for women and children in these camps,” she added.
Gaurav Gogoi said they will take the stories of the victims to Parliament. “The PM should have led an all-party delegation to Manipur, then we would have been happy. His NDA partners never came here, but INDIA is here to be with the people,” he added.
Memo to governor
In the memorandum presented to the governor, the opposition MPs demanded urgent rehabilitation and resettlement of those affected and also slammed Modi over his “silence”, showing “brazen indifference” to the ongoing situation in Manipur.
“You are also requested to apprise the Union Government of the complete breakdown of law and order in Manipur for the last 89 days so as to enable them to intervene in the precarious situation in Manipur and restore peace and normalcy,” it said.
‘Show off’
BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh called the visit a “mere show-off”. “PM Modi’s government is trying to heal the wounds of people in Manipur but the opposition is simply staging a drama,” he said Saturday in New Delhi.
BJP MP P.P. Chaudhary said the opposition leaders have nothing to do with Manipur and only want to do politics. He added that they could have participated in Parliament debate on Manipur.
“Why aren’t they talking about Manipur in Parliament, if they have something to tell let all us know, the nation should know the people should know but no they only want to do politics,” he told the media Sunday.
(Edited by Smriti Sinha)
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