By IANS
New Delhi : The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Tuesday urged Punjab not to take a soft stance on the growing intervention of religious bodies, with the state witnessing week-long clashes between the Dera Sacha Sauda sect and Sikhs.
The CPI-M politburo said this on a day when Punjab was crippled by a curfew-like situation in several places due to a shutdown called by Sikh groups and religious leaders against controversial Dera leader Gurmit Ram Rahim.
Expressing deep concern over the developments in Punjab, the CPI-M also asked the Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the state to pursue the "actions of the Dera Sacha Sauda" that have come under the "purview of the law."
The violence was triggered when Gurmit Ram Rahim allegedly offended the sensibilities of Sikhs by dressing up as the 10th Sikh guru, Gobind Singh.
"It is unfortunate that the Akal Takht (the highest temporal body of Sikhism) and the five high priests gave a call for a statewide bandh Tuesday and an ultimatum to the state government to seal all assets of the Dera by May 27," the politburo said in a statement.
"This type of intervention by religious organisations in the public and political spheres has dangerous implications. One has to only recall the past history of violence and terrorist activities which were unleashed in Punjab in the 1980s," it warned.
The communists also asked the state government to pursue the cases against the sect leader.
"The Akali Dal-BJP government in Punjab cannot take a soft attitude on this growing intervention of religious bodies and the fanning of extremist passions. It must firmly discharge its constitutional obligations to maintain peace and protect the rights of all communities," the CPI-M said.
The party also urged the people of Punjab to "rebuff the extremists on both sides who are bent upon sowing discord, and ensure that peace and communal amity is maintained".