Congress leaders Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Mallikarjun Kharge launched sharp attacks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for visiting Manipur two years after ethnic violence first erupted in the state. Speaking from Kerala, Priyanka Gandhi said she was “glad” that Modi had finally decided to visit but stressed that his arrival came too late, after hundreds had died and thousands had been displaced. She argued that visiting areas of pain and suffering had always been the tradition of Indian Prime Ministers, irrespective of party lines, and accused Modi of neglecting that responsibility until now.

Kharge, echoing her criticism, described Modi’s three-hour visit as “tokenism” and a “grave insult” to the people of Manipur. In a post on X, he accused the Prime Minister of staging a “roadshow” instead of engaging with victims in relief camps. He also noted that Modi had taken 46 foreign trips since the violence began but had not once set foot in Manipur until today. Highlighting the toll of the conflict — nearly 300 lives lost, 67,000 people displaced, and 1,500 injured — Kharge said the government had failed in its duty to maintain law and order while hiding behind the imposition of President’s Rule.

The Prime Minister, who is currently on a five-state tour, is set to lay the foundation stone for projects worth more than ₹7,300 crore in Churachandpur and inaugurate development works in Imphal worth ₹1,200 crore. While the BJP frames the visit as a commitment to development and rebuilding in Manipur, the Congress continues to portray it as a politically motivated move that comes far too late. The clash of narratives underscores how the violence in Manipur has become a flashpoint in national politics, with the opposition using Modi’s delayed response as a symbol of government apathy toward human suffering.