West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said the proposed visit of MPs of opposition coalition INDIA to ethnic strife-hit Manipur “will do good”.
Speaking at the assembly, Banerjee said she had also sought permission from the Centre for a visit to Manipur, but it was denied.
“A team of INDIA is visiting Manipur. It’ll do good. Let them go and see the situation themselves, talk to the people there, and listen to them. I had written to them (Centre) to allow me to go, but I was not given permission,” she said.
A team of INDIA alliance MPs will be visiting Manipur on July 29-30 to understand the current situation there.
Ethnic violence broke out in Manipur nearly three months ago, killing over 160 people since then, and injuring hundreds.
The violence erupted on May 3 after 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 mainly in the hill districts.
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