Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma Holds Congress Responsible For Manipur Unrest

Referring to the recent Manipur unrest, Chief Minister Sarma said that the ethnic clashes in the state are by and large due to the Congress and it is not the first time that the party has done it.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday lashed out at the Congress accusing the party of gaining power by spreading "communal disharmony."

Referring to the recent Manipur unrest, Chief Minister Sarma said that the ethnic clashes in the state are by and large due to the Congress and it is not the first time that the party has done it. He said that the grand old party has been doing this for the past 75 years for their vested interest.

Addressing a press conference in Guwahati, Chief Minister Sarma said, “The Congress today brought no confidence motion in Parliament citing the ongoing violence in Manipur. But data reveals that 300 people were killed in Manipur in 1990 when the Congress was in power in the state. Again in 2006, 105 people were killed in the state and then too, Congress was ruling the state.”

“Due to the wrong policies adopted by Congress, various problems and disputes of the Northeastern states have remained unsolved. The party has brought division among different communities of the region. Today, Manipur is burning and the Congress is solely responsible for it, Sarma added.”

The Chief Minister further said that an MP on Tuesday said in Parliament that former prime minister Manmohan Singh visited Assam’s Kokrajhar district during the 2008 ethnic clashes, but in reality, he never visited the state during that period.

“During the Indo-China war of 1962, the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru never paid a visit to the region. Even the former President of India Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, who hailed from Assam, too did not show any concern for the region when China attacked India. During the Nellie massacre of 1983 in Assam, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi visited the state for five minutes but did not do anything to end the clashes between two communities, Sarma said.”

“Whether Nagaland or Manipur, the Congress has the record of fueling widespread violence leading to “bloodshed” in these states. When Indira Gandhi visited Assam during the 1962 Indo-China war, Jawaharlal Nehru had warned her not to visit the state fearing of getting kidnapped by the Chinese army, Sarma further added.”

Chief Minister Sarma accused the Congress of “divisive” politics to gain power. 

The writer is a senior independent journalist covering the Northeast.