‘They speak with jealousy’: Kharge on BJP attacking Rahul Gandhi over Manipur visit
Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday hit out at Gandhi after his convoy was stopped by police in Manipur.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge lashed out at Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for their remarks on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's Manipur visit and Opposition meet saying that they spoke out of jealousy.
Speaking to reporters, “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 further added, “I condemn such a mindset. Why was Rahul Gandhi stopped? They should have provided him protection. When Amit Shah can go there, their people can go there, why can't an Opposition leader do the same? If he [Rahul Gandhi] went its drama, when you went what was it — mahadrama?”
Kharge further questioned why no security was provided to Gandhi. He said, “The man who walked for over 4,000 kms, can't you provide him a protection to visit the affected places? You have protection. Why couldn't he be provided police, military, CRF, Border force protection. Some arrangement should have been done. They knew of his visit four days ago.”
Rahul Gandhi's two-day Manipur visit
Former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi visited relief camps in Churachandpur on Thursday, one of the worst affected towns in the ethnic clashes. High drama ensued during the trip, as his convoy of cars was stopped at Bishnupur by the local police, fearing the carcade may face attacks. Gandhi eventually turned back and flew down to Churachandpur on a chopper.
Gandhi on Friday arrived in Manipur's Moirang to meet the people affected due to ethnic clashes in the northeastern state. Gandhi reached Moirang by a chopper from Imphal around 9.30 am and met a number of affected people in two relief camps and listened to their plight. He was accompanied by former Manipur chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh, party general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal, PCC president Keisham Meghachandra Singh and former MP Ajay Kumar.
Gandhi will also meet leaders of 10 like-minded political parties and members of civil society on the second day of his two-day visit to strife-torn Manipur.
Opposition parties on Gandhi's visit
Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday hit out at Gandhi after his convoy was stopped by police in Manipur.
“It is sad that Rahul Gandhi has gone to Manipur with stubbornness, which is not right. He should have been aware of the ground realities before going there. Sensitivity is far more important than stubbornness. We are a democratic country”, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said in a briefing.
“Rahul Gandhi wanted to go to Manipur and nobody stopped him. The local administration requested him citing protests surrounding his visit. The situation in Manipur today is due to legacy issues, largely due to Congress. I don't want to go into the issues because of the sensitivity attached to them”, Patra added.
