‘Will find out the truth’: 20-member INDIA delegation to visit Manipur on July 29-30 | India News

NEW DELHI: A delegation of 20 MPs from the opposition alliance INDIA will visit Manipur on July 29-30 to assess the situation in the northeastern state which has been engulfed in ethnic violence since May 3.

The delegation will visit both the valley and the hill regions of the state and meet different communities there. They will also visit some relief camps.
Congress’s Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and Gaurav Gogoi, JD(U)’s Lalan Singh, DMK’s Kanimozhi Karunanidhi, AAP’s Sushil Gupta, TMC’s Sushmita Dev, JMM’s Mahua Maji and NCP’s Mohammed Faizal are part of the delegation.
Ahead of the visit, Congress’ deputy leader in Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi called for an inquiry under a retired Supreme Court judge into the violence in Manipur.
“The BJP wants to give the picture that everything is fine in Manipur but it is not so. INDIA MPs will go to Manipur and find out the truth and will put forward that truth before Parliament,” he told reporters outside Parliament.
Trinamool Congress’ Dev said the opposition delegation wants to give the message that “we are with the people of Manipur”.
“We are concerned, we want peace to return … the government has failed, so we want to go there and see what solution can be found,” she said.
Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) leader Premchandran, who is also part of the delegation, said the intent of the visit is to have a first-hand information about the happenings in the state.
“The violence is still going on so we would like to have first-hand information and suggest some solutions and recommendations to the government and Parliament before the discussion comes there,” he said.
Earlier, the opposition bloc had wanted a delegation of chief ministers to visit the state but the idea was dropped due to logistical issues.
The bloc had been demanding that a delegation of their leaders be allowed to visit the state but till now they had been denied permission in view of the deteriorating situation.
The opposition has been demanding a statement from the prime minister in Parliament on the situation in Manipur where ethnic violence since May 3 has claimed nearly 200 lives.
(With inputs from agencies)