Arrange special flights to bring back students from Manipur: Bihar CM

The first flight will leave Imphal at 6am On Tuesday and reach Patna by 7.35am, said a senior official involved with the process

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar on Monday directed the resident commissioner at Bihar Bhawan in New Delhi to arrange special flights to bring back students stranded in strife-torn Manipur by arranging special flights.

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar (File Photo)

“Following CM’s directions, the resident commissioner is coordinating with Manipur authorities to bring back students from different places in the troubled state to the airport by bus. Once the students reach the airport, they will be brought to Patna by a special flight. The CM is increasingly concerned about their safety. The government will make all arrangements for their safe return,” said a communique from the information and public relations department.

The first flight will leave Imphal at 6am On Tuesday and reach Patna by 7.35am, said a senior official involved with the process.

Manipur has several national institutions, including the National Institute of Technology (NIT) and the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT), besides medical colleges, where students from across the country are enrolled.

The Bihar CM has asked chief secretary Amir Subhani to get in touch with his Manipur counterpart for the safety of Bihar residents living in Manipur and facilitating the return of those desiring to leave the state.

Kumar had earlier expressed concern over violence in Manipur and the safety of Bihar students in the state. Violent clashes broke out earlier this month between tribals and members of the majority Meitei community in the north-eastern state, which has so far displaced more than 13,000 people and killed at least 54.

Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav took to Twitter to slam Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “Manipur is burning and 54 persons have lost their lives so far. In Jammu & Kashmir, two soldiers were martyred. But neither the PM nor the home minister don’t even have words for sympathy, while they remain fully engaged in Karnataka electioneering,” he wrote.

Soon after, Janata Dal-United president Rajiv Ranjan alias Lalan Singh also attacked the PM for his engagement in electioneering in Karnataka while there is unrest in Manipur. “Manipur is burning and you are doing road shows in Karnataka, trying to fan religious passions and reap electoral dividends. Let alone solving the Manipur issue, you have not even expressed concern over it,” he wrote on Twitter.

The comments triggered a war of words, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders raising the issue of communal violence witnessed in Biharsharief and Sasaram. “Why did the CM and the deputy CM not visit there? The central government is taking all steps to bring back normalcy in Manipur. The PM is concerned and his government is acting. Those who cannot even control Bihar, should not preach on national issues,” said leader of the opposition and senior BJP leader Vijay Kumar Sinha.