Cong: Manipur CM'S Krishna quip attempt to distort history

IMPHAL: The Congress in Manipur on Friday took exception to Chief Minister N Biren Singh's recent comment on "the state's integration with India" and alleged that it was an "attempt to distort history".

During his recent visit to the Madhavpura Fair in Gujarat, the chief minister had said the north-east had been a part of India since the Dwapar Yug and "Manipur was made a part of India by Lord Krishna in the mythical times".

Singh had also invoked the mythological tale of Lord's Krishna's marriage and said, "By marrying Rukmini, Krishna had bound the northeast with India."

"The north-eastern states were ignored politically and socially in the past, despite being part of a united India," the chief minister had said at the event, where a number of BJP leaders, including Union ministers Kiren Rijiju and Mahesh Sharma, talked about the mythological references on Rukmini hailing from the north-east.

Taking a serious note of Singh's statement, opposition leaders, led by former chief minister O Ibobi Singh, said the chief minister should apologise for his "irresponsible claims" in Gujarat.

At a press conference at the Congress Bhavan here, Ibobi said the Congress did not want to gain "political mileage" from the issue and that it just wanted to clarify the facts.

"The state was politically merged with India in 1949 and Biren should clarify and apologise for his irresponsible claims, which go against the interest of the public, historians and intellectual circles," he said.

Manipur Pradesh Congress Committee president TN Haokip alleged that Singh's comment was an attempt "to promote the Hindutva ideology" in a secular India. CHANDIGARH: Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij said two people hurled stones at his official car when he was leaving the secretariat building complex in Panipat on Friday, but he escaped unhurt.

Vij, who was in Panipat to chair a grievance redressal committee meeting, said the car's front glass pane was damaged in the attack.

"I was about to come out of the secretariat building complex in my car when the stones were hurled at the vehicle which broke its front pane. I and my driver were lucky to escape unhurt," Vij said.

The accused, said to be mentally unsound, have been arrested, the Panipat police said.

The accused have told the police that they were protesting the "dilution" of the provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

The Supreme Court on March 20 diluted the provisions of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, in a bid to protect honest public servants discharging bonafide duties from being blackmailed with false cases under the Act.