By TCN News,
Jaipur: Muslims of Rajasthan have approached Congress president and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi to instruct her party chief minister of the state to check communal elements who are planning and executing communal riots in district after district since the Congress came to power here two years back.
In a joint memorandum to Sonia Gandhi, more than three dozen Muslim, Christian and civil rights groups, under the leadership of Rajasthan Muslim Forum, have detailed the present law and order situation in the state and about half a dozen communal riots that occurred in different districts in last two years, directly affecting the Muslim community.
With an appeal to stop communal violence against Muslim and Christian minorities in Rajasthan, the Muslim groups have requested Gandhi “for your directives to the CM of Rajasthan to protect lives and properties of the minorities and punishment to criminals, communal forces and guilty officials.”
“We write this to you with a deep anguish and concern about the present deteriorating law and order conditions in Rajasthan, directly affecting the Muslims,” read the memo.
Several cases of burning and looting of Muslim/Christian houses, shops, standing crops, religious places and killings have taken place in the present Congress regime in Rajasthan like the communal riots in Balesar (Jodhpur), Sarada (Udaipur), Manoharthana, Semli Haat, Maheshpur (Jhalawar) and recent burning alive of a Muslim police officer on duty in Soorwal village (Sawai Madhopur).
The groups said that lack of political will of the state government to tackle the communal forces has emboldened those elements and corroded people’s confidence in the secular government.
“These violent incidents occurred in the very presence of insensitive and colluding district officials. As a result, criminals are emboldened. Economy and peace of Muslims are threatened/ruined. Political will of the state to contain violence is conspicuously absent due to petty political expediency. This is, regrettably, corroding people’s confidence in the secular credentials of the Congress in Rajasthan.”
“These incidents speak about the communal and law and order health of the state ruled by a Gandhian Congress CM. Social organizations and citizens are alarmed and worried about this state of affairs. The electoral horizons for Congress are bleak because of such inaction by the Congress government against arson and looting. This is our worry also. Muslims feel highly wronged, discriminated against and unsafe, causing alienation and drift from Congress,” they wrote.
They have demanded CBI probe of Soorwal incident and suspension of and criminal procedure against SP, DM, DSP, Addl. SP and SDM of the district. Besides, all criminals should be apprehended irrespective of their caste or creed. The victims of Jodhpur, Udaipur and Jhalawar districts still await fair justice and due compensation for damage to their houses and properties. Rajasthan government should be instructed to speed up the due processes in this regard, they dmeanded.
The memorandum was signed by Qari Mueenuddeen, Convenor, Rajasthan Muslim Forum besides several other organizations, including Sadbhav Manch Rajasthan, People’s Union for Civil Liberties, Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, All India Milli Council, IRADA Society, Sheikh Jamiatul Abbas Foundation, All India Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat, Wahdat-e-Islami Rajasthan, National Muslim Women’s Welfare Society, Popular Front of India, Association for Protection of Civil Rights, National Muslim Women’s Welfare Society, Masihi Shakti Samiti, Dalit Adhikar Kendra, Muslim Ekta Manch, Maulana Azad Welfare and Relief Foundation, Tahaffuz-e-Awqaf Committee and Students Islamic Organisation of India.