CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Tapan Sen on Sunday said the situation in Manipur is an outcome of the BJP's "politics of pitching people against each other", as he demanded the resignation of Chief Minister N Biren Singh for allegedly "failing" to control the violence in his state.
"India is full of diversity which is our strength as we are all one. However, the cheap politics of the ruling party led to the creation of a grave situation in Manipur," he said, expressing apprehensions there could be communal incidents in the country before the general elections next year.
The ‘All India Convention of Contractual Workers of National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) and Chenab Valley Power Projects (CVPP) was held here. It was attended by over 200 delegates from Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, northeast states and Uttrakhand.
"The situation in Manipur is very bad and is the outcome of the BJP's politics of pitching people against each other on the basis of religion, creed and castes," Sen told reporters on the sidelines of a convention here.
Asked if Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh should resign, he said, "We have been demanding that he must go as it was his responsibility to stop the violence."
"What has been happening in Manipur since May 3 cannot be compared to the incidents in West Bengal or Rajasthan. They (BJP leaders) are enacting drama by diverting attention with an eye on power. Almost three months have passed but the BJP government has failed to restore normalcy," he said.
On reports of remarks of former army chief M M Naravane hinting the involvement of foreign agencies behind the Manipur crisis, the CPI(M) leader said if there is a foreign hand, the central government must answer what it was doing there.
Senior CPI(M) leader and President of State Committee of CITU M Y Tarigami lambasted the government over the issue of job guarantees to contractual workers of various power projects.
He also castigated the J&K administration for introducing smart meters and said, "This is a direct result of privatisation of the electricity. Private companies are bound to increase the power tariff but the consumers are not in a position to pay hefty amounts, triggering protests in almost everywhere in J&K."
CITU General Secretary Jagdish Sharma said the convention unanimously decided to form a coordination committee of the power project workers, which would meet once in three months to review their demands and decide the next course of action.
