PM has energy for foreign tours, but no empathy to visit Manipur: Congress

Taking a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his three-nation tour, the Congress on Sunday said he has all the energy, excitement, and enthusiasm -- '3 Es' -- for such visits and asked can he not summon up a 4th E -- empathy -- for going to Manipur "where the people's suffering continues unabated".

The opposition party also said this is Modi's 35th trip abroad since May 2023 and it was "pathetic of the PM to treat Manipur in this awful manner".

"The Prime Minister leaves for Cyprus, Canada, and Croatia this morning. There was a time when he boasted about his knowledge of algebra by spouting the (a+b)^2 equation as applicable to India and Canada. But things went horribly wrong thereafter," Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.

"When it appeared that Canada was dragging its feet on the invite to India, Mr. Modi's drum beaters proclaimed that he would not go even if invited.But like always, he stands exposed," Ramesh claimed.

The Canadian prime minister has said that India has been invited to the G7 Summit along with a number of other non-G7 countries because India is the fifth largest economy in the world, Ramesh pointed out.

"Perhaps Mr. Modi can remind him that according to the Niti Aayog CEO, India became the world's third largest economy on May 24, 2025," the Congress leader said.

The Congress leader also shared a video clip of the PM from 2015 in which he is heard giving a mathematical analogy to demonstrate the relationship between the two countries.

Ramesh said, "This is Mr. Modi's 35th trip abroad since May 2023. He has all the energy, excitement, and enthusiasm--the 3 Es-- for such visits. But can he not summon up a 4th E--empathy-- for going to Manipur where the people's distress, agony and suffering continues unabated?"  "He has met with NOBODY from the state, let alone political leaders, since May 3, 2023. Pathetic of the PM to treat Manipur in this awful manner," he added.

The Congress has been attacking the prime minister for not visiting Manipur besides slamming the Centre for its handling of the situation in the ethnic strife-torn northeastern state.

More than 220 people have been killed and thousands rendered homeless in ethnic violence between Imphal Valley-based Meiteis and adjoining hills-based Kuki-Zo groups since May 2023.

The Congress last week had accused Prime Minister Modi of "insensitivity" to the suffering of people in the state.

Ramesh had said the suffering of the people of Manipur is not only of the state and the northeastern region but of the entire country.

The Centre had on February 13 imposed President's rule in the northeastern state after Chief Minister N Biren Singh resigned. The state assembly, which had a tenure till 2027, has been put under suspended animation.

Prime Minister Modi on Sunday morning embarked on a three-nation tour during which he will take part in the G7 Summit in Canada, and visit Cyprus and Croatia to shore up India's bilateral cooperation with these two countries.

Modi will first be in Cyprus at the invitation of the country's president, Nikos Christodoulides.

In the second leg of his visit, Prime Minister Modi will travel to Kananaskis in Canada on June 16-17 to participate in the G7 Summit at the invitation of Canada Prime Minister Mark Carney.

In the final leg of his tour, Modi will undertake an official visit to Croatia on June 18 at the invitation of the prime minister of the European country, Andrej Plenkovic.