TMC to raise Manipur issue in Parliament, condemns sexual assault of women

Imphal: The Trinamool Congress on Wednesday said the party will raise the issue of ethnic strife-torn Manipur in Parliament, while condemning the incident in which two women were paraded naked and molested by a group of men in the northeastern state.

A five-member delegation of TMC MPs visited two relief camps each in Churachandpur, one of the most affected districts, and Imphal Valley.

The leaders also called on Governor Anusuiya Ukiye at Raj Bhavan here.

"People told us about their pain. The relief materials provided to the relief camps in both hills areas and the valley are not sufficient. Those camps should get sufficient relief," TMC Lok Sabha MP Kalyan Banerjee told reporters.

He said the governor has informed the delegation that if any relief is sent from West Bengal, she will ensure that the materials reach the affected people in relief camps.

“We will raise the issue in the monsoon session of Parliament. Restoration of peace is the prime consideration of our party," Banerjee said.

He said that the delegation will give a report to TMC supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

After a May 4 video surfaced on Wednesday showing two women from one of the warring communities being paraded naked by a few men, the TMC also urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to break his “78-day silence and stand by the people of Manipur.” The party tweeted: “Blood-curdling visuals have emerged from Manipur where two women... were paraded naked & sexually assaulted by a large group of men. What is stopping the Centre from dispatching fact-finding teams & commissions to Manipur? Why is the WCD Minister still silent on the matter?” The video was doing the rounds on the eve of a planned protest march announced by the Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF) on Thursday to highlight their plight.

The TMC also attacked the saffron party saying “All claims of Nari Shakti by the BJP ring hollow if we cannot ensure justice for the women of Manipur.”

Earlier, upon reaching the BJP-ruled northeastern state, TMC Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev told reporters: “Our leader Mamata Banerjee has sent a delegation of five MPs to listen to all the sides. Banerjee had written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah earlier and wanted to visit the state. But the home minister did not facilitate her visit. Later, she directed us to visit the state for a day or two."

Besides Kalyan Banerjee and Dev, the TMC delegation has its Rajya Sabha leader Derek O'Brien, Rajya Sabha member Dola Sen and Lok Sabha MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar.

More than 150 people have lost their lives, and several injured since ethnic violence broke out in the state 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.

Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur's population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley, while tribals, which include Nagas and Kukis, constitute 40 per cent and reside mostly in the hill districts.