All-party meet takes stock of situation in Manipur; govt committed to peace: Shah

Union home minister Amit Shah on Saturday urged representatives of 18 political parties to “have faith in him” as the as the Centre is monitoring and taking steps to restore normalcy in Manipur, where ethnic violence since May 3 has claimed nearly 115 lives.

- Neeraj Chauhan and Smriti Kak Ramachandran

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been “constantly monitoring the situation since day one”, Shah told an all-party meeting where leaders from some parties including the Congress, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) questioned the PM’s silence on the matter.

Apart from putting their disapproval of the state government’s response to the clashes between the Kuki and Meitei groups in the state on record, some opposition parties also sought chief minister N Biren Singh’s resignation. Several opposition parties also demanded that an all party delegation should be sent to Manipur.

According to leaders who attended the meeting, the home minister cited his long experience in dealing with crises as he sought to allay their fears about the violence.

Shah told leaders all efforts are underway to restore peace in the state where at least 115 lives have been lost, over 300 injured and nearly 40,000 displaced so far, a leader said seeking anonymity. “He acknowledged the concerns and the suggestions made by the leaders and assured them that the government would consider their recommendations with an open mind,” the leader cited above said after the over three-hour-long meeting in the national capital.

“The home minister said the PM has been guiding us with full sensitivity to find a solution to this problem and the government is committed to solving the problem by taking everyone along. The home minister said the priority of the Modi government is that no more lives should be lost due to violence in the state,” said a home ministry official.