Opposition asks govt to send all-party delegation to Manipur as Amit Shah chairs all-party meet

Union Home Minister Amit Shah with BJP chief J.P. Nadda, Union Minister and RLJP chief Pashupati Kumar Paras, Meghalaya CM and National Peoples Party chief Conrad Sangma, Sikkim CM and Sikkim Krantikari Morcha chief Prem Singh Tamang, former Manipur CM and Congress leader Okram Ibobi Singh and TMC MP Derek OBrien during an all-party meeting on violence in Manipur, in New Delhi, on June 24, 2023. PTI

New Delhi, June 24

An all-party meeting convened by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday had a detailed discussion on the situation in Manipur during which several Opposition parties sought an all-party delegation visit to the northeastern state but the government remained non-committal, sources said.

While the Congress demanded immediate sacking of Chief Minister N Biren Singh, the Samajwadi Party and a few others sought imposition of President’s rule in the state that has witnessed sporadic violence in since May 3.

However, the government asserted it was doing its best to bring back normalcy there, sources said.

Home Minister Amit Shah said all efforts are being made to restore peace in Manipur on instructions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the BJP’s Manipur in-charge Sambit Patra told reporters after the meeting.

The home minister also told the meeting that since the violence began in the state, there has “not been a single day” when he did not speak to PM Modi on the situation or the prime minister did not give instructions, Patra said.

Leaders of various political parties, including the BJP, Congress, Trinamool Congress, DMK, AIADMK, Aam Aadmi Party and the Left, attended the meeting which was convened by the home minister to discuss the prevailing situation in the state.

Nearly 120 people have lost their lives and over 3,000 are injured since the ethnic violence broke out in the state on May 3.

Those who attended the meeting included BJP president J P Nadda, former Manipur chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh (Congress), Derek O’Brien (TMC), Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Singh (NPP), Sikkim Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang (Sikkim Krantikari Morcha), Birendra Prasad Baishya (Asom Gana Parishad), M Thambi Durai (AIADMK), Tiruchi Siva (DMK), Pinaki Misra (BJD), Sanjay Singh (AAP), Manoj Jha (RJD) and Priyanka Chaturvedi (Shiv Sena).

“After the meeting of our leaders in Patna, within 24 hours the Opposition spoke in one united voice for Manipur, the Northeast and India,” O’Brien told reporters after the three-hour-long meeting held at the Parliament House complex.

The Trinamool Congress demanded an all-party delegation be sent to the violence-hit state within a week as it questioned the government’s handling of the situation, wondering if the government was “trying to turn Manipur into Kashmir”.

Ibobi Singh later told reporters that peace was not possible under the present state government headed Chief Minister N Biren Singh. He demanded Singh’s immediate replacement.

Ibobi Singh said it was unfortunate that he was not allowed more time to put across his points towards the end of the meeting.

Asked whether the home minister presented a roadmap for peace, he replied in the negative.

“The Congress and some other parties also demanded that an all-party delegation be sent to Manipur and we hope that the prime minister will hold a similar meeting after his return from foreign trip,” he said.

The request for a visit by an all-party delegation was raised by most of the parties but the government remained non-committal, sources said.

RJD MP Manoj Jha said the the entire opposition said in the meeting that the people have no trust on the person heading the state government and “you cannot have peace if that person is in-charge”.

“It was absolutely an open discussion. The entire opposition said that there is complete mis-trust in the political leadership of Manipur. The entire opposition went into the extent of saying that the there is no trust in the person heading the administration in Manipur,” he said.

SP’s Ram Gopal Yadav and one-two other leaders sought imposition of President’s rule, alleging the “state government has failed” to maintain peace and the “administration has collapsed”, the sources said.

Tiruchi Siva of the DMK said the opposition requested that an all-party delegation has to be sent to Manipur.

“It is not a law and order breakdown to be controlled by police and army or Assam Rifles. It is a failure of the governance in the state and the union government,” he said.

Siva said the home minister responded by saying the government has deployed more police and the opposition should trust him as he is looking after it.

The home minister asserted he will restore peace, Siva said, adding the opposition also expressed concern over Prime Minister Narendra Modi not expressing concern so far over the situation in the state.

Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said all parties expressed concern over the Manipur situation and sought immediate government action to bring back normalcy.

Union ministers Pralhad Joshi, Nityanand Rai and Ajay Kumar Mishra, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla, and Director of Intelligence Bureau Tapan Deka also attended the meeting.

Violent clashes broke out in Manipur after a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ was organised in the hill districts on May 3 to protest against the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.

Shah had visited the state for four days last month and met a cross sections of people in his efforts to bring back peace in the northeastern state.

Opposition parties have been criticising the government for its handling of the situation as violence has not stopped even after 50 days.

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PM Modi to visit 11th century Al-Hakim Mosque in Egypt tomorrow — why this is significant

New Delhi: Right after the US, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set off for another state visit, to Egypt. Amid a number of important engagements to strengthen diplomatic relations and bilateral ties between both countries, the PM is set to visit the iconic Al-Hakim Mosque in Cairo on 25 June — an 11th century mosque that was repaired with help from the Dawoodi Bohra community, a significantly loyal vote base of the BJP in India.

One of the holiest sites for Egyptian Muslims, the mosque, which is situated on the eastern side of al-Mu’izz street in the centre of Cairo, underwent extensive renovation over several years. According to local reports, the Dawoodi Bohras Ismaili Shiite sect donated approximately 85 million in local currency for the mosque which is  an important cultural site for the community in Cairo.

In February this year, it was reopened to the public. Media reports cited Presidential spokesperson Bassam Rady as lauding Mufaddal Saifuddin, the Sultan of the Indian Bohra community and the 53rd al-Dai al-Mutlaq, their spiritual leader, for significant contributions to the renovation and restoration of several shrines and historic mosques in Egypt.

PM Modi has had a long-standing association with the Bohra community so his visit to  the mosque holds significance for the latter. On the PM’s visit, a Twitter page of the community talked about the significance of the mosque.

Also read: US, India terminate six disputes at the WTO after Modi’s visit to the US
Significance of the mosque

The construction of the mosque, began in 879 AD by Ahmed Ibn Tulun, the founder of Egypt’s Tulunid Empire, was completed in 1013. It is the fourth-oldest mosque in Egypt and the second-largest in Cairo. With the passage of time, the mosque fell into a state of neglect and its role as a masjid all but ended, the official page on the mosque noted.

With the entry of Europeans in Egypt, particularly in the 19th and early 20th centuries, its precincts were transformed into a fort, stables, a museum, a warehouse, and a school. In 1979, it was  added to the UNESCO World Heritage List as a part of historic Cairo.
Dawoodi Bohras

The Bohras are a sect of Shi’a Isma’ilis, spread across both India and Pakistan, partly Hindu in origin and partly Yemenite, whose roots trace back to Egypt.

They get their name from the Gujarati term vahaurau, which means “to trade”. While the group can be found in Maharashtra, and Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat’s Surat is considered their home base.   The Bohra population in India is estimated to be over 500,000, with another 10 lakh individuals spread across the globe, according to media reports.

The Dawoodi Bohras are guided by their leader, known as the al-Dai al-Mutlaq (unrestricted missionary), who first operated from Yemen and then, for the last 450 years, from India.

According to thedawoodibohras.com, which claims to be the official website of the community, they got the name after emperor Akbar acknowledged the authority of Dai Syedna Dawood bin Qutubshah as the 27th dai.  In India, a sizable community of followers had existed since the 5th century.

The Dawoodi Bohras adhere to the Fatimi Ismaili Tayyibi school of thought – tracing their heritage to the Fatimi Imams, direct descendants of the Prophet, in Egypt.

While the Bohras are famed for their progressive perspective, one of their worst kept secrets is the practice of female genital mutilation. The UN has deemed it a human rights violation yet it is practised in India, show media reports.
PM Modi & Dawoodi Bohras

The spiritual guide of the community, Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin, mostly resides in India. The group is among the primary supporters of the BJP among Gujarati Muslims.

Syedna Mufaddal Saiffudin has often lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative and other schemes.

Following Gujarat’s 2002 riots which disillusioned the Muslims, the state government nurtured ties with the community. The previous Syedna, Mohammed Burhanuddin, openly backed the then Chief Minister, Modi.

When Modi started the Sadbhavna Mission to promote communal unity in Gujarat in 2011, it was the Dawoodi Bohras who showed up in force.

In 2013, when Modi launched his prime ministerial campaign, Zafar Sareshwala — a Bohra Muslim businessman — was one of its best-known Muslim faces.

Earlier this year, while inaugurating the new campus of Aljamea-tus-Saifiyah (Saifee Academy), an educational institute of the community at Marol in Mumbai, PM Modi claimed he was attending the event as a family member who has been associated with the community for four generations and called them the ‘brand ambassadors of shining India’.

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