TMC MP criticises PM for not visiting Manipur even after 8 months

New Delhi: Manipur has been "torn apart" for more than eight months, yet the Prime Minister has yet to visit the state, Trinamool Congress MP Derek O'Brien said on Sunday.

He made the remarks in a post on X on Manipur's statehood day, and he also posted a video on the social networking site showing himself pressing the issue in Rajya Sabha.

“January 21 is the statehood day for Manipur, Meghalaya and Tripura. Manipur has been torn apart for over eight months now. The Prime Minister has still not deigned to visit the state,” the TMC’s Rajya Sabha MP said.

Since May of last year, Manipur has experienced ethnic tensions, resulting in the loss of over 180 lives. Violence broke out on May 3 following a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ organised in the hill districts to oppose the Meitei community’s call for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.

Comprising approximately 53 per cent of Manipur’s population, Meiteis primarily inhabit the Imphal Valley, while tribals, encompassing Nagas and Kukis, makeup 40 per cent and predominantly reside in the hill districts.

With PTI inputs