Gaikhangam lashes BJP-led Govt

By Our Staff Reporter
IMPHAL, Aug 19: As if they will never return to power, the BJP-led coalition  Government has been indulging in graft practices wantonly, asserted MPCC president Gaikhangam.
Speaking at a block level workers’ interaction programme held today at the Mantripukhri residence of Victor Keishing under the aegis of Phungyar Block Congress Committee, Gaikhangam who is also a member of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) said that there is no governance and the BJP-led Government has pushed the State into complete chaos.
The preceding Congress Government was accused of indulging in rampant corruption but a closer scrutiny reveals that bribery was the work of some sycophants. But today, the BJP-led Government has been directly indulging in rampant and wanton bribery, he alleged.
Robbery and looting committed by criminals on highways and other isolated places have now stopped nowadays. Yet, the BJP-led Government has embarked on a mission of looting the masses, said the MPCC president.
The Government has become dysfunctional and it is unable to keep its own promises as evident in the charge and counter charges being hurled within the coalition Government.
It appears that the coalition Government would not last long, he said.
If the arrogant Government which is totally indifferent to the voices of minorities should be ousted,  it is crucial to strengthen Congress party, Gaikhangam said.
He claimed that there is a connection between abrogation of Article 370 from Jammu & Kashmir and the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB).
There is a strong apprehension of repeating in the North East what the NDA Government did in Jammu & Kashmir. There is also the possibility of scrapping the Constitutional safeguards given to the hill people, he said.
He further expressed strong apprehension that BJP-led NDA Government may create two Union Territories out of the present State of Manipur to divide the hill people and the plain people. He said that the block level interaction programme was organised with a larger objective of strengthening Congress party in the State.
Gaikhangam said that the series of interaction programmes is a part of a mission aimed at ensuring Congress party’s victory in at least 45 Assembly segments out of the State’s total 60 Assembly segments.
Recalling the political acumen and achievements of late Rishang Keishing, Gaikhangam remarked that Rishang Keishing was one political leader who took pivotal roles in safeguarding the unity and integrity of Manipur.
Calling upon the voters of Phungyar AC not to be disheartened by the loss of Congress candidate in the Lok Sabha election, the CWC member claimed that  over 5000 votes were cast in favour of the Congress candidate in Phungyar AC and it was still commendable.
AICC secretary Victor Keishing said that presence of Congress polling agents was allowed in only around 10 polling stations of the whole Phungyar AC in the last Lok Sabha election.Even if the Congress party did not win the Lok Sabha election, there is still a very large number of Congress workers and supporters in the State, he said while appealing to all the Congress workers to strive collectively in order to strengthen the party. MPCC vice-president T Mangibabu, Sagolsem Achouba, M Okendra and many other Congress leaders too attended the interaction programme.