Manipur Congress denies BJP's claims on MP Akoijam's remarks

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Imphal, Feb 5 (PTI) The Manipur Congress on Wednesday criticised the BJP for wrongly accusing Lok Sabha MP Angomcha Bimol Akoijam of saying that the state was supporting armed groups.

Denying the allegation, the Congress asserted that Akoijam’s remark had nothing to do with village volunteers.

State Congress working president Kh. Devabrata said the claims made by BJP leaders K. Sharat and M Suresh were baseless, asserting that Akoijam never mentioned militants in the valley as alleged by the saffron party.

Devabrata further clarified that the Congress's stance on village volunteers was clear, citing deputy CLP leader K. Ranjit Singh's speech in the Assembly, where he emphasised the need for legal protection for village volunteers.

Singh had suggested that without protection, these volunteers would remain vulnerable to legal action, which could lead to their arrests. He called for a law to grant amnesty to village volunteers.

"What the Congress feels about village volunteers was evident during a speech in the Assembly by deputy CLP leader K Ranjit Singh in which he mentioned that unless village volunteers are protected by an Act of law, they will be vulnerable in the eyes of the law subsequently leading to their arrests," Devbrata said.

In the midst of this political debate, a group of women inmates from a relief camp visited Akoijam's residence in Imphal West district, demanding clarification on his statement regarding village volunteers.

L. Thasana, one of the visitors, criticised both the BJP and Congress for using the issue of village volunteers in their political maneuvering, urging them to focus on the larger issues instead of making the volunteers scapegoats.

"The BJP and Congress should stop trying to make village volunteers guarding their villages sacrificial lambs and focus on the issues at hand," Thasan added.

The controversy erupted after BJP spokesperson M. Suresh criticised Akoijam's remarks in Parliament, implying that he was "an enemy of the village volunteers" and should be held responsible if AFSPA is imposed in the state.

Suresh also questioned why Akoijam did not address the deaths of three women and children in Jiribam last November in his speech, suggesting that Akoijam should be held responsible if his comments led to the imposition of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) in the region. PTI COR MNB