Assam CM slams Congress over its stance on Manipur incident

Guwahati, July 21 (IANS) Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday took a jibe at the Congress party in connection with Manipur incident where two women were paraded naked, molested, and allegedly gang raped by a group of miscreants on May 4. 

Sarma asserted that Manipur is a peace-loving state and the specific incident should not be linked with the entire state. 

"The Congress has been trying to defame Manipur as well as the entire northeastern region. However, the trick of the opposition party was not welcomed by the people of Manipur. The gruesome incident that happened cannot be linked with all the people of the state," he added. 

The Assam Chief Minister also claimed that the liberals have propaganda against the northeast. 

Taking to Twitter, he wrote: "The incident in Manipur is horrendous and the perpetrators will face the full wrath of law. Unfortunately, there is a clear pattern among the so called liberals. The outrage is limited to the northeast, while they will simply ignore equally brutal crimes elsewhere." 

Sarma also posted a series of tweets mentioning a few recent heinous crime incidents that happened in some of the non-BJP-ruled states including Rajasthan, Chattisgarh, Bihar, and West Bengal. 

He wrote: "A family of four including a six-month-old infant were first murdered and burnt alive in Jodhpur on July 19. A Dalit minor was gang-raped in front of her boyfriend in Jodhpur on July 16." 

The Assam Chief Minister further mentioned the incidents wherein a BJP worker in West Bengal was allegedly paraded nude by Trinamool leaders, and two tribal women being gang-raped in separate incidents in Bihar and Jharkhand. 

"These are a few recent instances of horrific crimes committed against women or tribals. Even in my state, Assam, there have been similar incidents. Crimes, occurring anywhere, need to be condemned. But why only target Manipur and northeast?" Sarma tweeted.