Rahul Gandhi accuses Modi govt of pushing Manipur into 'civil war'
New Delhi, Jul 1: Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi accused the BJP-led government on Monday of pushing Manipur into a "civil war" due to its policies and politics.
The Congress leader also criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for not visiting the the state since ethnic violence broke out there.
Initiating the debate on behalf of the opposition in the Lok Sabha on the Motion of Thanks for the president's address, Gandhi alleged that the government is behaving as if nothing has happened in Manipur.
"You have immersed Manipur into a civil war. Manipur has been burnt by you, your policies and your politics," he said.
The Congress leader said it seems as if Manipur is not an Indian state. "For the prime minister, there is no state of Manipur. We urged the prime minister to give a message, to go there. But no. You cannot get a reply (from the prime minister)," he said.
Gandhi also referred to the plight of the women in the northeastern state. Responding to a remark from the treasury benches, he said "you do not include women in your organisation, but I can speak about them".
Manipur has been on the boil since May last year as ethnic violence broke out in the state after a march was organised by Kuki tribals in the hill districts to protest against the valley-dominant Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.
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Mumbai-Pune Expressway connecting link now fully operational
Mumbai (PTI): The Mumbai-bound carriageway of the Mumbai-Pune Expressway connecting link was opened to vehicular traffic on Saturday noon after a delay caused by the dismantling of inauguration infrastructure and cleaning work, a day after the Pune section became operational.
The 13.3 km-long "missing link", which bypasses a section of the Bhor Ghat stretch of the expressway and cuts travel time between Mumbai and Pune by 25 to 30 minutes, was inaugurated a day earlier by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in the presence of Deputy CMs Eknath Shinde and Sunetra Pawar.
The Pune-bound carriageway of the corridor was opened to traffic immediately; however, the Mumbai-bound section remained closed to traffic for several hours after the inauguration.
An official of the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation told PTI on Saturday that the opening of the Mumbai-bound carriageway was delayed mainly due to the dismantling of the inauguration infrastructure and cleaning work.
The removal of the stage and other decorations was completed in the morning. The work to load and transport the material slightly delayed the opening of the carriageway.
Vehicular movement on the carriageway began after all the remaining material was cleared and road cleaning was completed, the official added.
The expressway control room said that despite significant vehicular movement, the access-controlled highway has not witnessed any major traffic snarls since Friday evening, after the Pune-bound carriageway of the missing link was opened to traffic.
The Missing Link project connects Khopoli (in Raigad) on the Mumbai side to Kusgaon near Lonavala in Pune district and is expected to make the expressway fully access-controlled, easing congestion in the ghat section.
Developed by the MSRDC and dubbed an "engineering marvel", the project includes two tunnels, two viaducts and a cable-stayed bridge over Tiger Valley. It bypasses the steep, accident-prone ghat section, where frequent traffic snarls are reported during weekends and on public holidays.
