Amid a fresh spurt of violence in strife-ridden Manipur, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Friday came down heavily on the BJP-led central and state governments asserting that the prime minister is not willing to talk to the people while the chief minister has lost the confidence of all sections of society in the northeastern state.
“The double-engine government is failing the people of Manipur. One engine (the state) has run out of fuel. The other engine (the centre) has decoupled itself and is hiding in the loco shed,” Chidambaram said in a tweet, taking a swipe at BJP's oft-used metaphor for being in power both at the Centre and in the state.
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The sharp escalation in violence saw a mob of around 50 people burnt down the house of Union minister of state for external affairs, RK Ranjan Singh, in Manipur’s capital on Thursday night. The next day a mob clashed with Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel after it had set the warehouse afire. The group also burnt tyres, logs and waste in the middle of streets in Wangkhei, Porompat and Thangapat areas affecting the flow of traffic in Imphal.
“It is obvious that Mr Biren Singh has lost the confidence of all sections of the people of Manipur. It is also obvious that Mr Narendra Modi is not willing to talk to the people of Manipur nor even make an appeal for peace,” Chidambaram said.
{{/usCountry}}“It is obvious that Mr Biren Singh has lost the confidence of all sections of the people of Manipur. It is also obvious that Mr Narendra Modi is not willing to talk to the people of Manipur nor even make an appeal for peace,” Chidambaram said.
{{/usCountry}}“Since May 3 -- that is in the last 45 days -- the Hon'ble Prime Minister has not uttered a word on Manipur; nor visited the state that is burning. This is the Government that boasts of 'Sabka Saath......',” he added.
Clashes between the majority Meitei community and the tribal Kuki community first erupted on May 3 over a court-proposed tweak to the state’s reservation matrix, granting scheduled tribe (ST) status to the former. A total of 115 people have lost their lives since then and more than 300 have been injured. In a state where ethnic fault lines run deep, tens of thousands of people were displaced as they fled burning homes and neighbourhoods into jungles, often across state borders.