Rahul Gandhi, a Congress MP, visited a relief camp in Jiribam on Monday and spoke with those impacted by the year-long ethnic conflict in neighboring Manipur after meeting flood-affected residents in Assam’s Cachar district. He visited relief camps with displaced Kuki-Zo members and even ones where flood victims are seeking refuge in Assam before leaving for Manipur.
Security Alert Before Rahul Gandhi’s Visit
Before his planned visit, early on Monday morning, gunmen in the Meitei neighborhood of Gularthal, Jiribam district, opened fire, prompting security authorities to respond.
As Rahul Gandhi landed at the airport in Silchar, Assam, Congress leaders from Assam and Manipur greeted him with joy. The Gandhi scion then traveled to Fulertal and engaged with the displaced flood victims residing in makeshift camps. Rahul Gandhi visited Assam at a period of intense flooding brought on by days of nonstop rain, which resulted in landslides and overflowing rivers.
The flood affected almost 22.70 lakh people in 28 districts. The state’s floods, landslides, and storms have claimed the lives of 78 people so far this year. The camps of the Cachar flood victims collapsed along Rahul Gandhi’s path to Jiribam, Manipur. When he arrived in Jiribam, he spoke with residents of a relief camp housed in a school to find more about their circumstances following their forced relocation as a result of ethnic conflict.
Congress’s Parliamentary Stand
In both Houses of Parliament, the opposition led by the Congress has brought up the Manipur problem on several occasions. Therefore, top Congressmen expect that Rahul Gandhi’s visit today will convey the message that “Prime Minister Narendra Modi should also visit the state riven by conflict.”
Additionally, the Congress has consistently disputed PM Modi’s assertion that the condition of affairs in Manipur is normal, calling into doubt his “astonishing claim.” On July 2, during PM Modi’s two-hour-long response to the motion of thanks on the President’s speech in the Lok Sabha, members of the Opposition repeatedly chanted the chants “Justice for Manipur” and “Bharat Jodo.”
PM Modi’s Russia Trip vs Manipur Crisis
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been under fire from Congress leader Jairam Ramesh over his planned trip to Russia and his decision to skip Manipur since ethnic violence there started.
“Today, the non-biological PM goes to Moscow while the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha heads for Assam and Manipur. Of course, the drumbeaters of the non-biological PM have claimed that he stopped the Russia-Ukraine war for some time. Presumably, this Moscow trip will lead to even more bizarre claims,” he tweeted.
“This is Rahul Gandhi’s third visit to Manipur ever since the state blew up fourteen months ago. The non-biological PM has not found the time nor even had the inclination to visit Manipur even for a few hours after the grave crisis erupted on May 3, 2023. He has not even met the Chief Minister of the state – who happens to be from his own party – and other political leaders of the state, including MLAs and MPs,” he said.