Although President Droupadi Murmu spoke of the development of the Northeast in general in her address to India’s both Houses of Parliament on Thursday (June 27, 2024), the 50-minute long President’s Address did not mention a word about the continued violence in Manipur for more than 14 months (424 days on June 29, 2024) since May 3 last year.
Opposition leaders sharply criticised President’s address and termed as a “script given by the Government” that was “full of lies”.
According to media reports, President Droupadi Murmu’s address to both Houses of Parliament drew a sharp criticism from the Opposition for not mentioning about the violence in Manipur. The more powerful Opposition in the Lok Sabha than before is also in no mood to let the government off the hook so far as continued violence in Manipur is concerned.
Chants of ‘Manipur…Manipur’ reverberated in the house when the President said, “My government is continuously working for lasting peace in the Northeast” and made a mention of the government’s plans to strengthen infrastructure in the region through feasibility studies for bullet train corridors and inland waterways.
“My government has increased the allocation for the development of the Northeastern Region by more than four times, in the last 10 years. The government is working to make this region a strategic gateway under its Act East Policy,” she continued addding that development works are being taken up in every field including education, health, tourism and employment.
The President said many old disputes in the region have been resolved and many important agreements reached in the past decade. “The work of withdrawing AFSPA from the disturbed areas of the Northeast is also underway in a phased manner by accelerating development in those areas. These new initiatives in every aspect of development in the country are heralding the future of India,” she continued.
However, there was no mention of Manipur as if President Murmu is not allowed to speak about Manipur.
The Congress President also voiced his disappointment at President Murmu’s address, which made no mention of runaway food inflation or the continuing strife in Manipur or the growing mob attacks and state action against minorities.
Manipur has seen an exponential rise in incidents of extortion and abduction, but the government, which prepared the President’s address, seems ignore deliberately to the situation.
According to media reports, after the address on June 27 Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge said that listening to President Droupadi Murmu’s first address to a joint sitting of both the Houses of Parliament “written by the Modi Govt, it seemed as if Modiji is in a perpetual state of denial”.
Referring to the violence in Manipur, Congress President said 221 people have lost their lives in the violence in Manipur that has been going on for 13 months, 50,000 people are still homeless. (The number of people who have lost their lives reached 227 and 33 are still reported missing while there are about 65,000 Internally Displaced Persons.)
“The flames of violence have now spread to peaceful districts like Jiribam, while extortion and kidnappings have increased in the Imphal Valley and other areas. But the BJP CM is still shamelessly clinging to his chair. There has been no concrete initiative for peace and normalcy,” the Congress President noted.
“Second, violence in Manipur: In the continuous violence in Manipur for the past 13 months, 221 people have lost their lives, and still, 50,000 people are homeless. The violence has now spread to peaceful districts like Jiribam, while extortion and kidnapping have increased in Imphal valley and other areas. But the BJP Chief Minister is still in power. No concrete steps have been taken for peace,” Kharge in his official X (Twitter) account said.
Likewise, Shashi Tharoor also reacted to the President’s address, stating, “There was no logic of talking about Emergency in the address after 49 years. She should have spoken about today’s issues. We did not hear anything about the NEET exam or unemployment.”
“The word Manipur did not come out from President Murmu or PM Modi. Issues like the India-China border should have been taken up in the address,” Shashi Tharoor said.
Further, when President Murmu touched the issue of the Naredra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) Government’s commitment to empowering women or “Nari Shakti” jeering from the Opposition benches was about the Manipur situation.
The Opposition members voiced in a chorus asking “Why did nobody go to Manipur when the State was burning … why did nobody look into the way women became victim of violence in the State …?”
Moreover, CPI (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation MP Sudama Prasad said the President’s address was “full of lies”.
“This is an alliance government which they are calling a majority government as if it is a BJP government. They should have talked about Manipur. Why are they making empty speeches on women empowerment? Women were paraded naked there (Manipur), people have been rendered homeless… women wrestlers have not yet received justice. This address was full of lies,” he said.
The “No Mention” of Manipur in President Droupadi Murmu’s address to both Houses of Parliament in the first joint session for Narendra Modi-led NDA Government on June 27 is not surprising.
Because, earlier, during the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led NDA Government of Modi 2.0, President Droupadi Murmu in her address to the joint sitting of Parliament on January 31, 2024 for Budget Session too did not mention a word on the continuing violence in Manipur.
Opposition members on February 2 regretted that President Droupadi Murmu in her address to the joint sitting of Parliament did not mention a word on the continuing violence in Manipur.
Participating in the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s address in the Lok Sabha, Congress member Dean Kuriakose alleged the President gave a political statement glorifying the anti-people policies of the government. She made “no comments of Manipur,” Kuriakose added.
DMK member Kalanidhi Veeraswamy charged that the President did not talk about the “horrors” in Manipur as she was not allowed to do so by the government.
He said that Murmu could have spoken about Manipur giving solace to the people who have suffered a lot during the crisis in the Northeastern State.
It was thus shown during BJP-led NDA’s Modi 2.0 Government; President Droupadi Murmu did not mention a word about continueing Manipur violence as it is well known that the President’s Address to the Parliament is prepared by the Union Cabinet. So, the President’s address obviously reflects the wish of Government in power.
Nevertheless, BJP’s Modi-led new NDA Government too continues to be silent on Manipur issue as No mention of Manipur in President Murmu’s Address as was during Modi 2.0 Government.
Senior Editor: Imphal Review of Arts and Politics
