Imphal, April 02 2009: With Rahul Gandhi, the general secretary of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) giving Imphal a miss and headed for Churachandpur district in Manipur amidst the 24-hour general strike called by the Joint Action Committee (JAC) against the brutal killing of Dr Th Kishan, Y token and A Rajen Sharma Wednesday, the JAC has called a 14-hour, 4:00 a.m.to 6:00 p.m.general strike on Saturday, April 4 to boycott her visit, when Sonia Gandhi, the chairperson of AICC, is expected to visit the state.

Informing this during a press conference held Thursday at the Manipur Press Club in Imphal, the convener of the JAC, Shubangker asserted in the aftermath of the triple murder, there was every reason why the visit of Sonia Gandhi should not be boycotted.

He also informed there will be no exception during the general strike, neither the educational institutions nor the ongoing examination of the Manipur University.

The convener, while giving his reasons for the general strike, said, "It's been almost 50 days since the killing and with the state hot on social unrest following the killing, no condolence message has been received so far from the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi.

Amidst this turmoil, she is scheduled to come to Imphal for campaign which is like thinking the people of Manipur as fools and disrespecting the sentiment of the people".

The convener also asserted the UPA chief has never visited Manipur till date even to console Sharmila who has been fasting unto death for the past eight years.

With such disappointing facts, the JAC sees no reason why Sonia Gandhi should not be boycotted, the convener asserted and added that even if the visit was cancelled the JAC will impose strike on any day of Sonia Gandhi's visit.

Meanwhile, the general 24-hour strike imposed by the JAC Thursday affected normal lives in Manipur.

However, no strike related violence was not reported.

During the strike all business establishments in the state remained closed and passengers vehicle including inter district buses stayed off roads.

However, some movement could be seen in Imphal amidst tight security.

Most educational institutions also remained closed for the day while very low attendance was seen in government offices.

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