Muslim groups, BJP, Bodos sat on dharna separately; Jantar Mantar turns into police camp
By Mumtaz Alam Falahi, TwoCircles.net,
New Delhi: “Stop killing of Muslims in Assam.” “Deport Bangladeshi Muslim migrants.” “Give us our land – Badruddin Ajmal down down.” The three different slogans can well reflect the mood and tone and tenor of the three different protest demonstrations organized at Parliament Street on Wednesday – the first day of the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Seeing the gravity and sensitivity of the issue, the entire Jantar Mantar area was turned into a police camp with hundreds of policemen erecting a human wall keeping each group at safe distance from the other.
Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind had all Muslim organizations to its protest demonstration over the recent killings of Bengali speaking Muslims in Kokrajhar and adjoining districts by armed Bodos. Top leaders of many Muslim organizations including Qari Usman, president and Mahmood Madani, general secretary of Jamiat, Dr Zafrul Islam Khan, president All India Muslim Majlise Mushawarat, Maulana Rafiq Qasmi, secretary Jamaat-e-Islami Hind and Dr SQR Ilyas, general secretary, Welfare Party of India took part in the protest.
On the other hand, top leadership of BJP had also landed at Jantar Mantar to lend support to Bodos and protest against Bangladeshi infiltrators. The BJP stage had its president Nitin Gadkari, senior party leaders Arun Jaitely, Vijya Goel and others.
Muslim leaders demanded the Prime Minister to warn state govt, police and administration to restore normalcy otherwise they should be made liable and dismissed. They demanded adequate compensation to the victims on the pattern of Sikh riot compensation package. Quick rehabilitation of the affected persons and their safe return to their homes were the other two major demands of Muslim organizations.
To curb the violence by armed Bodos, the Muslim leaders demanded seizure of all illegal arms from the area. They demanded dissolution of the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) “as it does not represent the majority communities of the area. Otherwise it should include non-Bodo communities as well proportionately.”
As soon as the first day of the Monsoon Session of Parliament started, BJP, according to their announced plan, disturbed the proceedings of the house and started making noise forcing the speakers to adjourn the Houses. BJP leaders rushed to the Jantar Mantar where the party had organized a protest demonstration against illegal Bangladeshi infiltrators and alleged atrocities on Bodos.
BJP leader Arun Jaitely said there has been a long conspiracy of Congress behind allowing Bangladeshi Muslims to enter India. “The conspiracy has been on for 50 years to destroy the Assamese character of the state,” said Jaitely and alleged that former Assam Muslim leaders Moinul Haque Chaudhury and Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed had planned it to create a votebank for Congress. “11 of 27 districts of Assam on the border of Bangladesh have majority of people from Bangladesh. The entire area is a chicken neck which can be cut with an international conspiracy and become part of Bangladesh,” said Jaitely.
He said four lakh people have become homeless in recent violence by “Bangladeshi Muslim infiltrators” but he didn’t give break-up of the homeless. According to state government’s official report, around 2.5 lakh of them are Muslims and 1.5 lakh Bodos.
At stone’s throw from Muslim demonstration site were sitting scores of Bodo people demanding their land rights and end to illegal infiltration. Organized by the Bodo Sahitya Sabha, the protestors were making strong slogans against Badruddin Ajmal, president Assam United Democratic Front. They even demanded his arrest. “Stop illegal infiltration, No rehabilitation to illegal migrants, and Save indigenous people” were some of their demands.