Congress, TMC members walkout of Standing Committee on Home Affairs, seek discussion over Manipur

New Delhi: Congress leaders Digvijaya Singh and Pradeep Bhattacharya, and Trinamool Congress leader Derek O'Brien on Thursday walked out of a meeting of the Standing Committee on Home Affairs while demanding a discussion over the Manipur violence issue.

According to party leaders, Singh, Bhattacharya and O'Brien staged the walkout as they were demanding a discussion over the condition in Manipur, where over 100 people have died since violence erupted on May 3.

Singh, who is a Rajya Sabha MP, had written a letter to Brijlal, chairman of the Standing Committee on Home Affairs on June 21 demanding a discussion over the Manipur violence.

In his letter to the chairman of the Committee, the Congress MP had demanded a detailed discussion on the violence in Manipur at July 6 meeting. Singh said that a meeting of the committee has been called on July 6, 19 and 27 to discuss the conditions of prisons and others to hear the suggestions from different states. The Congress leader also highlighted that in the Manipur violence, which started 50 days ago, over 100 people have died and over 300 have been injured and over 50,000 people forced to take refuge in the relief camps.

The senior Congress leader in his letter had also said, "It also gives me pain to learn that mothers, who have been separated from their families have given birth to 40 babies in the relief camps amid the violence in the north eastern state".

Schools are closed in Manipur and people are struggling to get their children admitted in schools in Mizoram, the letter read.

He had also highlighted that the ATMs in Manipur have run out of cash and due to suspension of the Internet services people were facing problems in making payments. "Thus, I would urge you to have a detailed discussion on Manipur violence instead of the conditions of the prisons," Singh had requested in his letter.