GUWAHATI: Manipur’s ongoing sectarian strife found a mention in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day speech on Tuesday. While unfurling the Tricolour at the historic Red Fort on the momentous occasion of the country’s 77th Independence Day, the Prime Minister stressed that the path for a solution to the state’s crisis can only be found through peace.
“The whole country stands with the people of Manipur. Peace is the only way to resolve all disputes. The Centre and the Manipur governments are making every effort to ensure that peace returns to the state at the earliest,” said the Prime Minister, addressing the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort.
In his tenth consecutive I-Day speech, PM Modi also claimed that peace in the state has been restored in the last few days and the people of Manipur and the Northeast must build on it.
“In the last few weeks, during the period of violence in Manipur, many people lost their lives, and the honour of mothers and daughters suffered a lot. But in the last few days, there are reports of peace. The nation is with Manipur,” he said.
The Prime Minister deliberation on the Manipur crisis during the Independence Day speech marks his third mention of the crisis in the state, with prior references occurring on July 20 and during his response to the no-confidence motion in Lok Sabha on August 10.
Earlier, the Opposition had criticised the Prime Minister for his perceived silence regarding the situation in Manipur and contended that it was only through their no-confidence motion that he was prompted to address the issue within the Parliament.
On August 10, driven by their discontent over the Modi’s failure to address the Manipur issue even after 90 minutes into his response to the no-confidence motion, the Opposition had staged a walkout.
