Manipur: Chidambaram slams BJP for comparing Manipur with Raj, WB

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Sunday hit out at the BJP for comparing the situation in Manipur to that of Bihar, West Bengal and Rajasthan, alleging that the government in the northeastern state has “collapsed” while the Centre is in a “self-induced coma”. The BJP has been raising the incidents of atrocities against women in West Bengal, Rajasthan and Bihar and questioning the “silence” of the opposition, which has termed it as a diversionary tactic to avoid debate on the situation in violence-hit Manipur. More than 160 people have lost their lives, and several have been injured since ethnic violence broke out in Manipur on May 3 when a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status. In a long Twitter post, Chidambaram said, “Let’s admit that there were incidents of violence against women in Bihar, West Bengal and Rajasthan. How does that excuse the continuing and relentless violence in Manipur?”