The JD(U) on Thursday attacked the Centre and the BJP administration in Manipur asserting that the northeastern state is burning for more than two months even though it has a double-engine government.
Referring to the incident in which two tribal women were paraded naked and molested by a mob at a village in Senapati district, JD(U) president Rajiv Ranjan Singh said it is horrific and shocking.
“The north-eastern state has the double engine government of BJP. But still, it is burning for more than two months. What happened to the 56-inch chest of the PM? The violence in Manipur shows no signs of stopping,” he tweeted.
BJP leaders use the term "double engine" to refer to the party being in power at the Centre as well as in a state.
“Innocent people are being killed; women are being brutally tortured. The assault on women in Manipur is horrific, shocking and disturbing,” Singh said in the Twitter post.
Tension mounted in the hills of Manipur after a May 4 video surfaced on Wednesday showing two women from one of the warring communities being paraded naked by a few men from the other side. The alleged mastermind was arrested on Thursday.
JD(U) chief spokesperson Neeraj Kumar also attacked the Centre for its alleged failure to handle the crisis in Manipur.
Talking to reporters, he said, “More than 150 people have so far died in Manipur, but the BJP-led Central government is sitting idle, doing nothing”.
More than 150 people have lost their lives, and several injured since ethnic violence broke out in the state on May 3, when a 'Tribal Solidarity March' was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.
Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur's population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley, while tribals, which include Nagas and Kukis, constitute 40 per cent and reside mostly in the hill districts.