Kangana Ranaut Confronted by Angry Crowd in Flood-Hit Manali Visit

Bollywood actor and BJP MP from Mandi, Kangana Ranaut, faced a wave of public outrage during her visit to the flood-ravaged Patlikuhal area in Manali, Kullu district, on Thursday, as locals chanted "Go back Kangana, you are late" and waved black flags in protest. Viral videos captured the heated scene, with residents expressing their frustration near Ranaut’s carcade, prompting police intervention to quell arguments between her BJP entourage and the aggrieved crowd.

The unrest follows devastating flash floods and landslides that struck Kullu and Manali on August 25 and 26, fueled by heavy monsoon rains. The surging Beas River obliterated a multi-storey hotel and four shops in Manali, while key stretches of the Chandigarh-Manali and Manali-Leh National Highways were washed away, severely disrupting connectivity.

The Right Bank Road linking Kullu city, the bus stand, and Bindu Dhank sustained significant damage. In Ramshele, a house was partially destroyed, floodwaters inundated homes in the 14 Mile area near Manali, and a fish farm in Patlikuhal was ruined as rivers and drains overflowed.

Earlier that day, Ranaut visited the hard-hit Solang and Palchan areas in the Manali subdivision, meeting affected residents and assessing the damage alongside BJP leader and former Manali MLA Govind Singh Thakur. They reported that 15-16 families from at-risk homes had been relocated to safer locations.

Residents warned that Solang village faces imminent collapse due to the Beas River eroding the mountainside beneath it, urging immediate river channelization to divert the destructive flow. The protests in Patlikuhal, however, underscored local discontent over Ranaut’s delayed response, amplifying calls for swift action to address Himachal’s ongoing disaster recovery needs.

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