Congress Terms PM Modi’s Manipur Visit A 'Pit Stop', Calls It 'Grave Insult'

Congress on Saturday criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Manipur, calling it a “pit stop” and describing the trip as “tokenism” and a “grave insult” to people affected by violence in the state.

According to PTI, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge alleged that the prime minister had organised a grand welcome ceremony for himself, which he described as “a cruel prick” to those still suffering. In a post on X, Kharge asked, “In the words of your own… Where is your Rajdharma?”

He wrote, “Narendra Modi ji, your 3-hour pit stop in Manipur is not compassion; it’s farce, tokenism, and a grave insult to wounded people. Your so-called roadshow in Imphal and Churachandpur today is nothing but a cowardly escape from hearing the cries of people in relief camps.”

Kharge pointed to the toll of the ongoing violence, “864 days of violence: 300 lives lost, 67,000 displaced, 1,500 plus injured. You made 46 foreign trips since, but not a single visit to share two words of sympathy with your own citizens.”

He noted that Modi’s last visit to Manipur was in January 2022 during elections and accused the BJP government of failing in its responsibility to maintain law and order. “Your ‘Double Engine’ has bulldozed the innocent lives of Manipur. You and Home Minister Amit Shah’s gross incompetence and complicity in betraying all communities was shielded from scrutiny, by imposing President’s Rule in the state. Violence still continues,” Kharge said.

He further alleged that the Union government, which is responsible for national security and border management, was “again dithering.” “This hush-hush pit stop isn’t repentance. It’s not even guilt. You are organising a grand welcome ceremony for yourself. It is a cruel prick to the wounds of those still suffering because of your own abdication of basic constitutional responsibilities,” he added.

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, speaking to reporters in Wayanad, also criticised the timing of the prime minister’s visit. “I am glad that he has decided, after two years, that it is worth visiting (Manipur). He should have gone long before. It is very unfortunate that he has allowed what is happening there to continue for so long and for so many people to be killed. That has not been the tradition of prime ministers in India,” she said.

Prime Minister Modi, on his first visit to the state since ethnic violence broke out more than two years ago, is scheduled to interact with internally displaced people in Churachandpur and Imphal. He will also inaugurate and lay foundation stones for development projects worth ₹8,500 crore, PTI reported.

(With inputs from PTI)