Manipur officials say no confirmation yet on PM Modi’s visit in September

Senior officials of the Manipur government clarified that there is no official confirmation regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s reported visit to the state in the second week of September. 

If confirmed, this would be the Prime Minister’s first visit to Manipur since ethnic clashes broke out more than two years ago.

Speculation about Modi’s visit arose after a section of the media suggested that he might combine his scheduled programme in Mizoram with a trip to Manipur. The Prime Minister is slated to reach Mizoram on September 12 and inaugurate the Bairabi-Sairang railway line the following day.

However, state officials in Imphal maintained that no communication has been received from the Centre about a possible Manipur stopover. “No, we do not have any official confirmation from the Centre as of now that the Prime Minister will visit Manipur in the second week of September,” one senior official said, while others also echoed the same stance.

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Manipur’s lone Rajya Sabha MP, Leishemba Sanajaoba of the BJP, also said he had no information about Modi’s arrival. “I also noticed media reports that the PM will be visiting the state in the second week of September. However, we don’t have any official confirmation regarding that as of now,” he told reporters on the sidelines of a programme in Imphal.

The opposition has repeatedly criticised Modi for not visiting Manipur since violence between the Meitei and Kuki communities erupted in May 2023. The clashes have left at least 260 people dead and displaced thousands, creating a deep political and humanitarian crisis in the state.