Panel promises impartial report

RAJKOT, August 12: It turned out to be a tussle for the political parties as to who would give more representations through affiliated ce...

RAJKOT, August 12: It turned out to be a tussle for the political parties as to who would give more representations through affiliated cells to the National Minorities Commission here today.

Though the team of Rev Dr James Massey and John Dayal had mainly come to look into the incident related to the burning of the New Testament at the IP Mission School, it was presented with memoranda by six delegations from the region, mostly from affiliated cells of either the BJP or the Congress which traded charges on contacting the Press.

Rajkot Saurashtra Minorities Commission activists raised slogans against the commission for only concentrating on the School issue. Following the law and order problem during the panel8217;s visit to Surat yesterday, heavy security was clamped at the Circuit House since morning, leading to cancellation of proposed demonstrations by the political parties.

Refusing to comment on the findings, Massey said the panel would submit report both to the Central and the State governments by the month end. He asserted that panel would not act under any kind of political pressure and the report would be impartial, pointed out similar exercises in Bihar, Punjab and Madhya Pradesh earlier.

In his representation, Congress leader Manohar singh Jadeja charged that the State Government was playing to the tunes of fascist8217; supporters 8211; the VHP and the Bajrang Dal because of which the minorities were feeling insecure after losing faith in the administration.

He said the law and order situation was deteriorating day by day and atrocities on the minorities as well as the Scheduled Castes and Tribes were on the rise, referring to Director General of Police C P Singh8217;s recent outpourings against the VHP and the Bajrang Dal.

Referring to the IP Mission School incident, he said that Muslims in Jamnagar had been denied relief after the cyclone.

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The Kutch-Saurashtra Congress Minorities Cell wanted to draw the team8217;s attention to the controversy surrounding the whereabouts of Munger Hussain of Jamnagar, allegedly tortured to death. It lamented harassment of minority officers, discrimination in educational institutions, withdrawl of subsidy to those going on Haj, among others.

The BJP delegation, on the other hand, demanded dissolution of the commission and substituting it with a human rights commission.

Party leader Vijay Rupani told Saurashtra Newsline that there was no point in the sending a team to Rajkot which had been peaceful during the BJP-rule which meant that the minorities were safe. He said the IP Mission School incident was being blown out of proportions by the Congress to derive political mileage and it was not acting as a responsible Opposition party.

He asked what the Congress had to say to the panel8217;s visit under C K Jaffer Sharief following arrests of several Muslims after riots during Chhabildas Mehta government and those during previous Congress regimes. He rued why is a team was not being sent to Kashmir to look into the condition of the Hindus there, and questioned why the Gujarat team did not include a member from the majority community.