New Delhi: Congress leader Pawan Khera on Saturday claimed that a flight ticket he booked for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Manipur was quietly cancelled by Air India Express.Khera shared the booking details on X and alleged that the airline cancelled the ticket without informing him. His post was meant to criticise the Prime Minister for not visiting the violence-hit state.

He wrote that it now seems like the Prime Minister visits northeastern states only when elections are near.Air India Express responded soon after. The airline said the ticket was not cancelled by them. It stated that the booking was cancelled through the same source that made it, using a self service option.

The exchange has added a political twist to the ongoing debate over the Prime Minister’s absence from Manipur since the unrest began.