On Sunday, senior Congress figure Manishankar Aiyar spoke at the Khushwant Singh Literary Festival in Shimla, praising former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s leadership and warning that India’s borders are in trouble today.
Aiyar said Rajiv Gandhi consistently put the country’s interests above party politics. “He saw the nation first,” he told the crowd. “He moved on national priorities, even when Congress could have broken away for short‑term gains.”
He contrasted Rajiv’s approach with what he calls “the current administration,” which he claims leaves India’s peripheries—especially the North, Northeast, and border states—behind. Aiyar singled out Narendra Modi’s government, saying the country is suffering “burning frontiers.” He named Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, and Manipur as examples where things are deteriorating.
During a Q&A on Kashmir’s peace talks, Aiyar highlighted past agreements – the Punjab Accord, Assam Accord, Mizoram Accord, Darjeeling Accord, and Kashmir Accord – as proof that Rajiv Gandhi put the country first. “In Punjab despite terrorism, he insisted on free elections. In Assam he helped a student movement rise to political power. In Mizoram he turned a former insurgent into chief minister,” he said. “That was extraordinary.”
Aiyar also spoke about the protests in Ladakh over its status in the Sixth Schedule and statehood demands. He noted that activist Sonam Wangchuk, who had been on a hunger strike, was arrested when the Centre accused his NGO of foreign funding. Aiyar blamed Modi for “lecturing” people from a distance. He said PM Modi spent only three hours in Manipur after a years‑long insurgency, never truly speaking with the locals.
Speaking from his past role as Rajiv Gandhi’s tour coach, Aiyar recalled the former PM’s insistence on visiting remote corners of India. “We went to Andaman and Nicobar, Lakshadweep, and even talked about giving textbooks in Dhivehi to the Maldives,” he said. He claimed Rajiv’s policies lifted social and gender peripheries, especially through Panchayati Raj reforms that enabled 1.4 million women to win seats in local bodies.
Aiyar’s remarks come amid growing tensions in northern and northeastern India and a backlash against the Modi government’s handling of border and internal security issues. He urges the Congress to prioritize national interests over party division, echoing Rajiv Gandhi’s legacy of inclusive governance.
Source: aninews
Stay informed on all the latest news, real-time breaking news updates, and follow all the important headlines in world News on Latest NewsX. Follow us on social media Facebook, Twitter(X), Gettr and subscribe our Youtube Channel.
