"First Manipur, Then Haryana, You Are Trying To Burn Nation": Rahul Gandhi attacks Centre during No-Confidence Motion

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• Aug 9, 2023 | Dhupali Das

Rahul Gandhi launched a scathing attack on the Prime Minister over the ongoing unrest in Manipur which has claimed over a hundred lives...

Digital Desk: The BJP murdered India in Manipur and is now attempting to set Haryana on fire, said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in the Lok Sabha today in a scathing attack on the Narendra Modi government.

Addressing the Lower House during the debate on the no-confidence motion against the BJP government, Gandhi said, "India is a voice, a voice of the heart. You have silenced that voice in Manipur. You have murdered Bharat Mata in Manipur. You are traitors. Here, my mother is seated. You murdered the other mother, Bharat Mata, in Manipur. That is why the Prime Minister does not visit Manipur. You are not Bharat Mata's protectors; you are her murderers." 

"The Prime Minister has not visited Manipur because he does not consider it to be a part of India. You (BJP) have divided Manipur," Gandhi stated, amid loud objections from the treasury benches. He claimed that the Centre could end the bloodshed in Manipur by deploying the Army, but has yet to do so.

Invoking the legendary Ramayana Gandhi stated that Ravan was murdered not by Ram, but by his arrogance. "You've sprayed kerosene everywhere, you've set fire to Manipur, and now you're trying the same thing in Haryana," he continued, referring to recent ethnic confrontations in Gurugram and Nuh that left six people dead.

The remarks provoked a massive uproar in the House, with senior ministers demanding Gandhi's apology.

Earlier, Gandhi stated that when he set out on the Bharat Jodo Yatra from Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu to Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir, he was confident in his fitness and did not anticipate any difficulties. "But arrogance is not tolerated in this country. "Within a few days, an old injury resurfaced, and I was in pain," he said.

The Congress leader recounted how he acquired strength and courage from the people he met during the march, as well as sensed their pain and struggle. Gandhi also recalled his interactions with two ladies in relief camps set up to house those displaced by ethnic conflict in Manipur.