New Delhi, Sept 10
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Thursday attended the memorial gathering for Chongtham Vikram Singh ji, a renowned musician from Manipur, and paid tribute to his life and memory and condemned his killing and said that its a tragedy that a young man has been murdered, and also a tragedy that he was attacked because of where he was from.
He also said that we expect justice and we will get justice, and we will not be cowed down or scared of violence.
Addressing the gathering here, Rahul Gandhi said, “It’s a tragedy… It’s a tragedy on many accounts, not just on one account. It’s a tragedy that a young man has been murdered. It’s also a tragedy that he was attacked because of where he was from.
“It’s a tragedy for the people of Manipur. Of course, it’s not the only tragedy that the people of Manipur have been facing. You have been facing huge tragedies again and again and again over the last few years,” he said.
The Congress leader said that “its a tragedy because an amazing talent has been taken away from us”.
“It’s a tragedy because his son will never see his father again. It’s a tragedy because his parents will never see their son again,” he said, adding that and it really doesn’t matter, what Ikram Ibobi said, whether it’s a mistake or it’s not a mistake.
“Because whether he was killed or he was not killed, there was a violence in this act. There was violence, there was hatred, and there was arrogance. And it is something that has become a fashion these days that if you are powerful, you can be violent. If you’re powerful, somehow you can be arrogant, somehow you can do whatever you feel like. Of course, we don’t believe in fighting violence with violence. That is very easy to do, but it is not something that anybody in this room believes in,” he said.
The Gandhi scion said that then the question arises – how do you respond to something like this?
“Well, the first thing I will say is – you don’t respond with anger, you don’t respond with hatred, because then you’re doing exactly what was done to Vicky.”
“But you respond just the way that you have responded… by expressing yourself, by defending the idea that you stand for, by showing the talent that you have and by saying that we are not going to accept this nonsense, we are not going to be pushed aside by this violence, we are not going to be frightened of this violence, and we are all going to stand against this violence. And that, to me, is the best answer,” he asserted.
He pointed out that in politics, in life… symbols are very important, and he is a symbol.
“He’s (Vikram Singh) a symbol of a life that was well-lived; a symbol of love, affection… a talented person, a gentle person, a father, a son… and we are extremely proud of him. We expect justice. We will get justice, and we will not be cowed down or scared of violence,” the Congres leader said.
He pointed out that they were doing this function today because this is not a single incident.
“This happens now all the time. Sometimes, it doesn’t end in murder; sometimes, it is just an insult; sometimes, it is just a threat; sometimes, it is just violence… but it is happening too much in our country. It is happening to our brothers and sisters from the Northeast. It is happening to many-many different communities in this country, and we stand against it, we will fight it and we will defeat it,” he added
Vikram Singh was allegedly assaulted by a group of eight people outside his residence in southeast Delhi’s Kilokari after he objected to noise and commotion near his home. He died during treatment at the Holy Family Hospital. He was 54.
Seven people have been arrested by the Delhi Police in connection with the death of the Manipur-origin musician. A juvenile has also been detained in the case.
