Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday assured the people of strife-torn Manipur that peace would return soon in the state and efforts are on to punish the culprits behind the violence. Replying to a no-confidence motion in the Lok Sabha, the prime minister blamed the previous Congress governments for leaving behind an “extremely unstable situation” in the northeast.
“The country is with you, this Parliament is with you. We will together find ways to resolve this challenge, peace will be established again soon. I assure the people of Manipur that the state will again witness progress,” Modi said.
Manipur has been witnessing ethnic violence for the last three months, which has claimed over 160 lives and rendered thousands homeless.
Modi said his government is working hard to give the harshest punishment to those involved in crimes in the Manipur violence.
During his address, the prime minister hit out at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his references to 'Bharat Mata' and wondered why some people wish her death. These comments have deeply hurt the sentiments of every India, he said.
"These are people who sometime speak about the murder of democracy and the murder of the Constitution. These are the people (Congress) who divided Maa Bharati into three pieces. When the time came to free Maa Bharati of slavery, they chopped off her limbs," he said.
"The violence in Manipur is saddening. Crimes against women are unacceptable and the central and state governments are working together to ensure the guilty are punished," Modi said.
Taking a swipe at the Congress, the prime minister said the northeast had suffered the most under the long rule of the opposition party.
“Manipur, which has sacrificed so much for the country, never got its due from the Congress. There was a time in Manipur when everything used to be run by insurgents. Whose government was it that time?,” he asked.
Earlier in his speech, Modi took a jibe at the I.N.D.I.A. Alliance, saying that the leaders of the bloc have laid almost one and half decade old UPA to rest last month in Bengaluru.
“I want to tell the opposition that you are following those who even after so many generations are not able to differentiate between Lal mirch and Hari mirch'...,” he said.
Launching a scathing attack on the Congress, the prime minister said people of the country had no confidence in the opposition party, and accused it of seizing on any negative thing about India coming from foreign soil.
"It is the country's confidence that when you bring another no-confidence motion in 2028, India will be the third largest economy in the world," he said, asserting that his dispensation has given a scam-free governance.
Modi hit out at the opposition for bringing in a no-confidence motion against his government, saying the NDA and the BJP will return to power breaking all previous records in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. He said it's a blessing of God that the opposition has brought in such a motion.
"People of the country have shown trust in our government again and again. I am here to show my gratitude to the crores of the people of the country," he said.
“Opposition brought such a motion in 2018 also. I had said it was their floor test, not of the government and I was proven right. No-confidence motion always lucky for us; this one also will ensure we will return with record-breaking mandate,” Modi said.
The prime minister also attacked the opposition parties for not letting discussion on a number of bills related to the country's development, saying they have shown that 'dal' (party) is bigger than 'desh' (country) for them.
The debate on no-confidence motion, moved by the opposition parties on the violence in Manipur, began on Tuesday.
