Prez rule imposed at appropriate time in Manipur: Home Minister

Home Minister Amit Shah has claimed that the situation in Manipur was now relatively peaceful and the government was holding discussions with the Meitei and the Kuki communities, who are also talking among themselves, for establishing lasting peace.

He said that the President's rule was imposed in Manipur at an appropriate time to restore normalcy in the state. The Home Minister said this was not the first time that the state was witnessing ethnic violence. “It has endured such strife in the past, and for even longer durations of three to four years,” he said.

Shah also came down heavily on Congress MP Rahul Gandhi for his criticism of the Parliament’s functioning, saying: “The LoP in the Lok Sabha perhaps does not know that there are rules for speaking in the House, which cannot be run through whims and fancies.”

“He (Gandhi) was given 42 per cent of the time in the discussion on the Budget. Now, it is up to him to decide who would speak. Besides, when a serious discussion was going on in Parliament, he was in Vietnam; and when he returned, he started insisting on speaking as per his wish," Shah said. He also described the four per cent quota on contracts announced by the Congress government in Karnataka as a “lollipop” for Muslims.

He said statehood in J&K would be restored as promised. “We have given the assurance that statehood will be restored. From the beginning, we have said that statehood would be given. But it can’t be disclosed when it will be given at a public forum,” he said when asked about the timeline.

Shah exuded confidence that the BJP would remain in power at the Centre for at least 30 years due to its consistent performance.

When asked about the Uniform Civil Code, the Home Minister said one by one, all the BJP-ruled state governments would introduce it. “Gujarat has already set up a committee for it; while the Uttarakhand Government has enacted the law for its implementation in the state. All states will bring it as per their convenience,” he said.

Responding to a query on the alleged discovery of cash at the Delhi residence of High Court judge, Justice Yashwant Varma, the minister said, “We are cooperating with it. We should wait for the outcome of the committee constituted by the chief justice.”

He accused the TMC government in West Bengal of using illegal immigrants as the party’s vote bank and said the Centre could not allow such a move to succeed.

Arrives for 2-day Bihar tour

• Home Minister Amit Shah arrived in Bihar for a two-day tour on Saturday, during which he is scheduled to meet NDA leaders, including CM Nitish Kumar.
• According to state BJP chief Dilip Jaiswal, Shah would interact with the party's legislators, followed by a meeting, till late in the night.
• On Sunday, Shah will address a function of the Cooperation Department and leave for a rally in Gopalganj district.
• Then, Shah will visit the CM’s residence for a crucial meeting of the NDA, before boarding his return flight,” said the Bihar BJP president.