PM Modi has abandoned all responsibility for Manipur: Jairam Ramesh

In a scathing critique, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh has slammed the Prime Minister's approach to the ongoing crisis in Manipur, accusing him of abandoning his responsibility towards the citizens and—far from resolving it—failing to engage with the severity of the situation.

In a post on X, Ramesh highlighted several key points regarding the Prime Minister's actions (or lack thereof) on the turmoil gripping the north-eastern state and posed a number of questions to Modi.

1. Prime Minister's absence and indifference: Ramesh pointed out that since the eruption of large-scale violence in Manipur on 3 May 2023, the Prime Minister has not visited the state, almost a whole year later. This sits in stark contrast with Rahul Gandhi's proactive engagement with the people of Manipur, having visited twice to assess the situation first-hand, said Ramesh.

Was the Prime Minister's absence due to "indifference" or "cowardice", Ramesh asked? Neither, of course, makes for a flattering picture of the PM.

2. Deteriorating law and order: Describing the situation in Manipur as verging on "civil war", Ramesh highlighted the alarming statistics of casualties, displacements and weapons theft.

More than 200 people have been killed, more than 60,000 displaced and thousands of weapons stolen from the state police, claimed Ramesh.

Despite the Supreme Court's acknowledgment of an "absolute breakdown of Constitutional machinery", he noted, the Prime Minister has refrained from dismissing the Biren Singh government. The Congress leader continued to question the Prime Minister's motivation behind protecting Singh.

3. Global image and hypocrisy: Ramesh also criticised Prime Minister Modi's claims of being a global leader ('Vishwaguru') amidst the international spotlight on the chaos in Manipur:

4. Preservation of democracy: Addressing the boycott of elections by Kuki youth and women in late March, Ramesh urged the Prime Minister to safeguard the democratic process in Manipur and ensure the protection of citizens' rights and participation.

5. Feudal titles?: Ramesh raised the matter of BJP's Rajya Sabha MP Sanajaoba Leishemba styling himself the 'Maharaja of Manipur' on his official letterhead, which violates Article 18 of the Constitution, abolishing monarchy (Sanajaoba is a scion of the former ruling house of the princely state of Manipur).

Ramesh made clear in his tweet his expectation for the Prime Minister and Union home minister Amit Shah to clarify the BJP's official stance on this issue and to intervene.

Manipur goes to polls for the 2024 general elections in the very first of seven phases, on Friday, 19 April.