BJP state chief ‘appreciates’ Rahul Gandhi’s Manipur visit; ‘Focus should be on peace’

Rahul Gandhi went to Manipur on a two-day visit where he met people at relief camps, had interaction with various stakeholders.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state president in Manipur Adhikarimayum Sharda Devi on Saturday expressed her appreciation over senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s visit to the strife-torn state on Thursday. She also suggested against politicising the current state of affairs in Manipur in the wake of ethnic clashes.

“In the current situation, I appreciate Rahul Gandhi’s visit to the state. However, the focus should be on solving the situation and bringing back peace. The issue should not be politicised,” Devi told news agency ANI.

On Thursday, Rahul Gandhi visited relief camps in Churachandpur district, and at Moirang in Bishnupur district a day after. He also had an interaction with representatives of student bodies, women and intellectuals followed by a meeting with state Governor Anusuiya Uikey.

“I came to listen to all my brothers and sisters of Manipur. People of all communities are being very welcoming and loving. It’s very unfortunate that the government is stopping me. Manipur needs healing. Peace has to be our only priority,” the former Congress chief said on Twitter.

Gandhi’s visit drew criticism from BJP as party spokesperson Sambit Patra said he visited the state with ‘stubbornness’ and that he should have been aware of the ground realities before going there.

In response, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge lashed out at the right-wing party saying that they spoke out of jealousy. “They (BJP) always speak with jealousy. If a Congress leader goes there (Manipur) to try and understand the difficulties of the people, they call it a drama. They call the Opposition meeting in Patna, a photo session. They are not of a democratic mindset but of dictatorship,” he said while speaking with reporters.

Meanwhile, the BJP state president backed people’s move to support chief minister N Biren Singh by stopping him from tendering his resignation.

“The people have come out supporting the Chief Minister because they have faith that situation will improve. People believe that if the situation is not controlled this time, it might go out of hand. The current situation in the state is the result of the doings of the previous government. The public has full trust in CM Biren’s government,” she added.