Ramesh charged Prime Minister Narendra Modi with abandoning the northeastern state by avoiding accountability by “ignoring” the crisis
NEW DELHI: On Tuesday, the 175th day of the ongoing Manipur turmoil that began in May, Jairam Ramesh, General Secretary of the Congress party, posed several incisive inquiries on his official Twitter account.
Ramesh charged Prime Minister Narendra Modi with abandoning the northeastern state by avoiding accountability by “ignoring” the crisis. “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 was needed the most. He cannot escape accountability and responsibility by completely ignoring the crisis,” the tweet read.
He also asked about Modi’s failure to convene meetings with Manipur’s Chief Minister, N. Biren Singh, and the elected MLAs. He alleged that Modi hadn’t met with the BJP members who had secured assembly seats.
Furthermore, he questioned why the Minister of State for External Affairs, Rajkumar Ranjan Singh, who represents Manipur (Inner) in the Lok Sabha, had not been able to hold meetings with the prime minister either.
Today is the 175th day since Manipur erupted and social harmony in the state was devastated. But five questions continue to be asked by the people of Manipur themselves and by all those wanting the process of reconciliation and trust-building in the state to gather momentum.
1.…
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) October 24, 2023
Ramesh also targeted PM Modi for not having spoken about the crisis at length for over five minutes. He quipped, “Why has the PM who pontificates on all subjects not seen it fit to speak on Manipur publicly for more than 4-5 minutes at most, that too in a routine manner and after immense pressure from the Opposition?”
He continued by questioning why Modi had not made any visits to the conflict-ridden state. In contrast, Home Minister Amit Shah has made several trips to Manipur to keep the Prime Minister’s Office informed about the events while Modi was attending the BRICS Summit in South Africa.
Earlier in the Monsoon Session of the Parliament, the Opposition had demanded discourse regarding the Manipur strife from the PM. However, following constant attacks by Modi towards the Opposition, they staged a walkout. “Opposition never learned how to listen and have patience,” Modi had said during his speech following the walkout.