Amit Shah slams opposition over Manipur violence

Accusing the Congress of politicising the Manipur violence, Union Home Minister Amit Shah asserted on Wednesday that the BJP was always ready for dialogue.

Speaking to the Lok Sabha during the debate on the vote of no-confidence, Amit Shah added that the violence in Manipur was decreasing and pleaded with the Opposition “not to add fuel to the fire”.

“I agree with the Opposition’s claim that ethnic clashes have taken place in Manipur. Manipur violence is shameful, politicising it is even more shameful,” Amit Shah told the Lok Sabha.

“I request the Opposition not to put fuel to fire. Rahul Gandhi went to Manipur to do politics. We asked Rahul Gandhi to go to Churachandpur via helicopter, but he opposed and took the road route and then he was stopped by the Manipur Police,” he added.

The Union Home Minister also accused the Opposition of playing politics on the Manipur issue instead of working towards a solution.

“From day one, I was ready for the discussion on the Manipur issue, but the Opposition never wanted a discussion. The opposition doesn’t want me to speak but they can’t silence me. 130 cr people have selected us so they have to listen to us…During the past six years of our government, the need for curfew never rose,” Amit Shah said.

The Union Minister cited an April High Court decision that instructed the state administration to consider including the Meitei people on the Scheduled Tribes (ST) list as justification for the violent conflicts.

“The order only aggravated the situation,” Shah said.