Rahul Gandhi to visit violence-hit Manipur today

Rahul Gandhi. File Pic

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will visit violence-hit Manipur on June 29 and 30, AICC general secretary KC Venugopal said. Rahul Gandhi will visit relief camps and meet people displaced by the ethnic clashes and also interact with representatives of civil society in Imphal and Churachandpur during the visit, Venugopal said. Violence gripped Manipur on May 3 after clashes erupted during a rally organised by the All Tribal Students Union (ATSU) to protest against the demand for the inclusion of Meiteis in the list of Scheduled Tribes (STs).

"Rahul Gandhi ji will be visiting Manipur on 29-30 June. He will visit relief camps and interact with civil society representatives in Imphal and Churachandpur during his visit. Manipur has been burning for nearly two months and desperately needs a healing touch so that the society can move from conflict to peace. This is a humanitarian tragedy and it is our responsibility to be a force of love, not hate," said KC Venugopal in a tweet.

Meanwhile, former Manipur CM and Congress leader Okram Ibobi Singh appealed to the people of Manipur to maintain peace and extend cooperation during Rahul Gandhi's two days visit to Manipur. "We appeal to the people of Manipur, please maintain peace, calm and extend cooperation during Rahul Gandhi's two-day visit...," he says.

The Congress has been making scathing attacks against the BJP governments, both at the Centre and in the state of Manipur, over their handling of the violence. The party has already demanded the removal of Chief Minister N Biren Singh. Notably, the Assam Rifles have evacuated over 50,000 displaced persons from all communities in violence-hit Manipur to date and provided them safe passage, shelter, food, and medicines.

Earlier on June 24, Home Minister Shah gave an assurance of restoring peace in the state, while the opposition parties questioned PM Narendra Modi's 'silence' on the matter at the all-party meeting on the violence in Manipur. A meeting was also called by Amit Shah to take stock of the situation in the violence-wracked state. BJP national president JP Nadda, Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma, and CPI (M) MP John Brittas, among other leaders, were present in the meeting.

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