By Online Desk
Gaurav Gogoi, deputy leader of the Congress Party in the Lok Sabha, today said the opposition parties were forced to call for a no-confidence motion against the current government due to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s refusal to address the issue of Manipur violence in the parliament.
“It is our helplessness that we had to bring this motion. This was never about whether he have the numbers [to push it through],” Gogoi said, “It was only about justice, justice to Manipur.”
Gogoi, who officially presented the no-confidence motion on behalf of the opposition’s grand alliance, said all that the opposition wanted was for the PM, and the parliament, to condemn the violence in one voice.
“We had only one demand. As the head of the country, the prime minister should come to the parliament, express his sympathy so that all parties could express their support and a message could be sent to the people of Manipur that the entire parliament stands with Manipur and wants peace to prevail in the state…
“Unfortunately, this was not to be. The prime minister has instead taken a vow of silence, that he won’t say anything in the Lok Sabha, nor in the Rajya Sabha. This is why we have been forced to come up with this no-confidence motion, so that, we can break this vow of silence,” he added.
Gogoi then went on to ask “three questions” to the prime minister.
“My first question is – Why haven’t you gone to Manipur yet? Opposition leaders have gone, the home minister has gone, (even) the minister of state for home has gone. Why haven’t you gone, as the head of the country?
“My second question is: Why did it take you nearly 80 days to say something about Manipur, and that too, only for 30 seconds? And since then, not a single word to convey his sympathy or request for peace.
“All the ministers are saying – we will speak. But the importance of the prime minister’s words is different. His words carry more weight. No minister’s words can match that.
“The third question is – Why haven’t you changed the chief minister of Manipur yet. When it was time to play politics in Gujarat, you changed the chief minister not once, but twice. In Uttarakhand, you changed the chief minister three or four times. In Tripura too, you changed the chief minister ahead of elections.
“What is so special about the Manipur chief minister that you refuse to touch him,” asked Gogoi.
Gogoi said the opposition contingent who visited Manipur was shocked to see the extent of the communal divide in the state.
“We have never seen so much division, so much anger. We have never seen that one segment of the society is talking about another in such terms of vengeance. We have never seen that in a state, a boundary has been drawn in such a manner that on one side live one group of people and on the other another. This government talks of ‘one India’, but has instead created ‘two Manipurs’.”
The discussions on the no-confidence motion is expected to continue for two days.
Gaurav Gogoi, deputy leader of the Congress Party in the Lok Sabha, today said the opposition parties were forced to call for a no-confidence motion against the current government due to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s refusal to address the issue of Manipur violence in the parliament.
“It is our helplessness that we had to bring this motion. This was never about whether he have the numbers [to push it through],” Gogoi said, “It was only about justice, justice to Manipur.”
Gogoi, who officially presented the no-confidence motion on behalf of the opposition’s grand alliance, said all that the opposition wanted was for the PM, and the parliament, to condemn the violence in one voice.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });
“We had only one demand. As the head of the country, the prime minister should come to the parliament, express his sympathy so that all parties could express their support and a message could be sent to the people of Manipur that the entire parliament stands with Manipur and wants peace to prevail in the state…
“Unfortunately, this was not to be. The prime minister has instead taken a vow of silence, that he won’t say anything in the Lok Sabha, nor in the Rajya Sabha. This is why we have been forced to come up with this no-confidence motion, so that, we can break this vow of silence,” he added.
Gogoi then went on to ask “three questions” to the prime minister.
“My first question is – Why haven’t you gone to Manipur yet? Opposition leaders have gone, the home minister has gone, (even) the minister of state for home has gone. Why haven’t you gone, as the head of the country?
“My second question is: Why did it take you nearly 80 days to say something about Manipur, and that too, only for 30 seconds? And since then, not a single word to convey his sympathy or request for peace.
“All the ministers are saying – we will speak. But the importance of the prime minister’s words is different. His words carry more weight. No minister’s words can match that.
“The third question is – Why haven’t you changed the chief minister of Manipur yet. When it was time to play politics in Gujarat, you changed the chief minister not once, but twice. In Uttarakhand, you changed the chief minister three or four times. In Tripura too, you changed the chief minister ahead of elections.
“What is so special about the Manipur chief minister that you refuse to touch him,” asked Gogoi.
Gogoi said the opposition contingent who visited Manipur was shocked to see the extent of the communal divide in the state.
“We have never seen so much division, so much anger. We have never seen that one segment of the society is talking about another in such terms of vengeance. We have never seen that in a state, a boundary has been drawn in such a manner that on one side live one group of people and on the other another. This government talks of ‘one India’, but has instead created ‘two Manipurs’.”
The discussions on the no-confidence motion is expected to continue for two days.
