Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party government faced a no-confidence motion in parliament on Tuesday, August 8, 2023, over ethnic conflict that has plagued the state of Manipur and Modi’s failure to speak on the issue for over three months.
The motion, brought by the 26 opposition party alliance, known as INDIA, poses no threat to the stability of Modi’s government, which has an overwhelming majority in parliament.
Starting a debate in parliament, Congress Party lawmaker, Gaurav Gogoi averred that the no confidence motion was not about numbers, but one of justice for the people of Manipur. “If Manipur is burning, India is burning. If Manipur has been divided, India is divided,” he stated.
Gogoi stressed that Modi’s silence depicted the failure of his party on a state and federal level, adding that Modi “has not uttered a word of condolence” or even appealed for peace in Manipur since the violence began in early May.
Questioning the Prime Minister’s public silence over the strife in a state that is ruled by the BJP, Gogoi said, “our call is clear, that the Prime Minister should talk on the issue.”
Modi has not commented on the violence that erupted in the state more than three months ago, except for brief remarks that he made after a video showing two women in Manipur being paraded naked went viral.
The clashes that have broken out between the majority Meitei group and the tribal Kuki community in Manipur have claimed over 150 lives and displaced about 60,000 people. Several incidents of sexual violence against women have been reported.
According to Political analysts, the opposition INDIA alliance is hoping to gain political traction ahead of next year’s general elections by using the debate in parliament to focus attention on what it calls divisive policies of the BJP.
Political Analyst, Rasheed Kidwai opined, “From the opposition’s standpoint, the no-confidence motion should be seen more in terms of building a tempo against Mr. Modi.” He added, “What the opposition is doing through the Manipur crisis is to highlight these types of fault lines during BJP’s rule.”
Lawmakers will vote on the motion on Thursday, August 10, 2023, after the debate ends. Modi is expected to speak on Thursday when the motion is put to a vote.
Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled government holds a clear majority in Parliament, which means the motion is certain to be defeated.
This is the second time Modi’s government has faced a no-confidence motion during its nine-year rule. Another motion brought in 2018 was defeated.
“Wrong Time And In A Wrong Manner”
Also on Tuesday, Union Minister, Kiren Rijiju stated that the opposition alliance have brought the no-confidence motion against the Narendra Modi government in the Lok Sabha at a “wrong time and in a wrong manner.”
Lok Sabha is the lower house of India’s Parliament.
Rijiju said that there was no need for such a motion against the government at such a time when Modi has emerged as the world leader and the country was marching ahead to become a developed nation by 2047.
“Congress and opposition parties will regret bringing in the no-confidence motion at the wrong time and in a wrong manner,” the minister stated.
Moreover, in an address to BJP MPs at a closed-door meeting, Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated that the opposition brought the no-confidence motion against his government to test the confidence of its own alliance members in each other as the INDIA bloc is marked by distrust among its constituents.
Modi described the opposition alliance as “ghamandia” (marked by arrogance)
