A delegation of 21 Opposition MPs on Saturday reached violence-hit Manipur on a two-day visit. The MPs visited relief camps in Manipur and are likely to meet Governor Anusuiya Uikey tomorrow.
Manipur has been in the grips of ethnic violence between the state's Meitei and tribal communities since May 3. Over 150 people have been killed in the violence so far and several thousands have been displaced. Houses, places of worship, and political establishments have come under attacks.
The delegation includes MPs from parties like the Congress, Trinamool Congress (TMC), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), DMK, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Janata Dal-United (JD-U), and CPM. The delegation, which includes Congress leader in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, will make recommendations to the government and Parliament for a solution to Manipur’s problems, based on their observations, reported PTI.
Oppposition visits relief camps
After visiting a relief camp in Churachandpur district, Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, said, "It is clear from their faces, that they are extremely scared. They do not want to talk to anyone. They know that this government is not going to provide any help to them." "They are talking of investigation by CBI (into the crimes committed)... I would like to ask were they (central government) sleeping till now?," he further asked.
Opposition leaders visited a total of four 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," Congress NP Gaurav Gogoi said.
He further said that the opposition believes that Parliament should have a discussion on the issue. "I think too much delay has happened. The government has to give a roadmap and we all want to list to the government's plan and give our suggestions," he said.
Agenda of Opposition MP's Manipur visit
Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chaudhary told reporters before their departure from Delhi for Manipur that they want to visit as many relief camps as possible and talk to the affected people.
The Opposition MPs left for Manipur in a commercial flight.
"Our endeavour is to make an assessment of the situation prevailing in the state. We hope that the state government will not create any hindrance during our visit," Chaudhary said, adding that the government should make efforts to restore normalcy in Manipur, bring peace and resolve the pain and suffering of the people of the state.
Chaudhary said they will also meet Governor Anusuiya Uikey and apprise her of their experiences during the visit.
"The government wants to pass off the Manipur violence as a law-and-order situation, but it is not just that as ethnic clashes have taken place there. The government should not try and evade the issue as it is being discussed all over the world," Chaudhary said, as per PTI.
Ahead of the visit, Congress's deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi called for an inquiry led by a retired Supreme Court judge into the violence in Manipur, reported PTI.
Sources told PTI that the Opposition bloc had written to Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh, who allowed the delegation to visit the state.
"The MPs have sought to use helicopters in Manipur and if allowed, they will visit the far-flung areas of Churachandpur, where fresh violence has taken place," reported PTI.
Who all are visiting Manipur?
Twenty-one MPs from the Opposition parties are visiting Manipur.
Besides Chaudhary and Gogoi, the delegation includes: Sushmita Dev (Trinamool Congress), Mahua Maji (Jharkhand Mukti Morcha), Kanimozhi (DMK), Mohammad Faizal (Nationalist Congress Party), Jayant Chaudhary (Rashtriya Lok Dal), Manoj Kumar Jha (Rashtriya Janata Dal), N K Premachandran (Revolutionary Socialist Party), T Thirumavalavan (VCK), Janata Dal (United) chief Rajiv Ranjan (Lalan) Singh, Aneel Prasad Hegde (JD-U), CPI's Sandosh Kumar, CPI-M's A A Rahim, Samajwadi Party's Javed Ali Khan, IUML's E T Mohammed Basheer, AAP's Sushil Gupta, Arvind Sawant (Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), D Ravikumar (DMK), Phulo Devi Netam and K Suresh (Congress).
The timing of the Opposition MPs' visit to Manipur
The Opposition MPs' visit comes at a time when the ruling BJP has urged the Opposition to refrain from visiting Manipur. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has accused the Opposition of seeking to create tension in the state. Union minister Anurag Thakur said that the visit is "an act".
Thakur told media, "It is just a showoff by the INDIA alliance MPs who have gone to Manipur. The opposition and its allies never spoke when Manipur used to burn during their rule in the state...When they come back from Manipur, I would request Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury to bring them to West Bengal. I want to ask Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury does he agree with the atrocities against women in the state...In Rajasthan where there are killings and crimes against women, the opposition did not go there. Will the INDIA alliance also go to Rajasthan?"
There has been a logjam in Parliament during the current Monsoon Session over the Manipur issue, with the Opposition MPs demanding a long discussion on it as well as a statement from the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. However, the government has insisted that Home Minister Amit Shah will respond to the Opposition. The Opposition has for weeks slammed Modi for being silent on the issue.
The Parliament has witnessed heated scenes over the Manipur situation and much of the session was been washed out with adjournments amid little business being done.
