Imphal: Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi said on Monday all patriots should reach out to the people of Manipur and appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the state.
Addressing the media here at the Congress office, Gandhi said it is important that the Prime Minister comes here and listen to the people of Manipur and try to understand what is going on.
The Congress leader further said Manipur is a proud state of the Indian Union and it is important for the Prime Minister to visit the state even if there was no tragedy. The Prime Minister should listen to the tragedy of the people of Manipur and comfort theM. The Congress party is ready to support any measure to improve the situation, he added.
Manipur is one of the most beautiful states in the country, Gandhi said, adding he was expecting some improvement but felt disappointed that the situation is nowhere near what it should be.
Rahul Gandhi after his arrival interacted with people from both the communities involved in the conflict at Jiribam, Churachandpur and Moirang. The Congress leader said he heard the people, heard their pain.
Gandhi said he came to Manipur to listen to the people and give them confidence. The Congress will try to apply pressure on the government so that it acts, he added. The need of the hour is peace, violence is hurting everybody and he added that he has not seen anywhere in India what is going on in Manipur. People are split into two and it is a tragedy for all involved, he remarked.
He further said he is ready to visit Manipur repeatedly, and told the people that he has come as a brother, a family member to help, to bring back peace.
Congress is ready to do whatever it can to bring back peace, he further said. Before addressing the media, Rahul Gandhi met Governor Anusuiya Uikey and expressed displeasure over the situation in Manipur.
Gandhi said he is not happy as there is no progress and he does not want to politicise the issue. People of Manipur should start thinking about peace and violence will not bring anything, he added
This is Gandhi’s third visit to Manipur after the crisis started in May 2023 at Churachandpur district. He had earlier visited Manipur twice.
Security was beefed up in the state given the visit and there was no restriction this time in his movements as were done in the earlier two visits. Rahul Gandhi will later leave the state.
