Hours after Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh tendered an apology on Tuesday for the ethnic violence that claimed over 250 lives, the Congress party asked why Prime Minister Narendra Modi couldn’t go to the northeast state and do the same even though he travels across the country and the world.
"Why can't the Prime Minister go to Manipur and say the same thing there? He has deliberately avoided visiting the state since May 4, 2023, even as he jets around the country and the world," Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.
He added that the people of Manipur cannot understand the “neglect” by the prime minister.
#WATCH | Delhi | On Manipur CM N Biren Singh's statement today, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh says, " ...The Prime Minister should go to Manipur and say the same thing that the CM said today. The people of Manipur are asking why the PM is neglecting us..." pic.twitter.com/UdlkqX4dMn
— ANI (@ANI) December 31, 2024
Earlier in the day, Chief Minister Singh apologised for the ethnic clashes that erupted in the state in May 2023, and appealed to all communities to forget and forgive past mistakes and live together in a "peaceful" and "prosperous" state.
"I want to say sorry for what happened in the state. Many people lost their loved ones and many had to leave their homes. I regret and want to apologise. But after seeing relative peace in the last three-four months, I hope that normalcy will be restored in the coming year,” Singh said.
"Whatever happened has happened... I want to appeal to all communities to forgive and forget our past mistakes and start life afresh by living together in a peaceful and prosperous Manipur," he added.
#WATCH | Imphal: Manipur CM N Biren Singh says "This entire year has been very unfortunate. I feel regret and I want to say sorry to the people of the state for what is happening till today, since last May 3. Many people lost their loved ones. Many people left their homes. I… pic.twitter.com/tvAxInKPdg
— ANI (@ANI) December 31, 2024
Manipur violence: CM Biren Singh says 'sorry' to people 19 months after ethnic clashes erupted
The Congress-led opposition has been targeting the central government over the violence, questioning Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s silence over the issue. The grand old party has been criticisng Modi for not visiting the state since the clashes bigan.
According to a report of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Manipur accounted for about 77 per cent of the total violence in the entire northeastern region in 2023.
Among the total 243 violent incidents occurred in the Northeast, 187 took place in Manipur, the report said.
