The Congress on Sunday, July 23, reiterated its demand for the dismissal of Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh, saying there won’t be any justice or movement towards peace in the state as long as he holds the chair. Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh added that law and order has collapsed in the state and blamed the BJP government for not acting on the violence in the state which has now resulted in “unimaginable atrocities.”
Ramesh said, "There won’t be any justice or movement towards peace as long as Biren Singh remains CM. The time has long passed for the Prime Minister to act. He must act now and not deflect." Taking a swipe at the elected BJP government in the North-eastern state, Ramesh added, “The truth of the horror in Manipur continues to trickle out with every passing day and it is clear that the law and order in the state has collapsed. Mobs, armed vigilantes and insurgent groups are running amok. Women and families have faced the worst, unimaginable atrocities."
He also accused the state government of complicity in the violence and claimed that the state has actively fanned hate. “The social fabric has been completely torn apart with a total breakdown of trust between communities," he said.
The Congress, which has been blaming the N Biren Singh government in Manipur over the current situation, has stepped up its attack at the BJP after the video of two women being stripped, paraded, and sexually assaulted surfaced on social media.
Earlier on Sunday morning, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram also criticised the BJP over the matter. He said, "How can the situation in Manipur be compared to the situation in Bihar, West Bengal and Rajasthan? The Central government has not only been incompetent and partisan, it is callous and cruel when it hides behind the smokescreen of odious comparisons. If stern action is required in Bihar, West Bengal and Rajasthan, certainly instruct the state governments to take stronger action, but that does not excuse the barbarism that is taking place in Manipur."
Manipur Police on Saturday, July 22, arrested a juvenile, taking the total number of arrests in Manipur women assault case to six.