By IANS,
Gandhinagar: The opposition Congress staged a walk-out from the Gujarat assembly Thursday, protesting remarks from the treasury benches that many of the tribals were Maoists.
The walk-out came at the end of a daylong debate on the budgetary demands for the forest and tribal welfare department when Forest Minister Mangubhai Patel was giving his reply.
Sparks flew when Congress member Bachubhai Kishori insisted on an assurance from the minister that tribal leaders will not be indiscriminately branded as Naxalites (Maoists) and jailed, and another minister was heard saying that the Congress members were trying to protect anti-social elements.
Angry opposition members were immediately on their feet seeking an explanation from the government. As no explanation was forthcoming, the Congress members resorted to sloganeering and disrupted the proceedings of the house.
Yet failing to get a response from the treasury benches, the Congress members staged a walk-out in protest.
Later in a statement, Leader of Opposition Shaktisinh Gohil said the government was resorting to indiscriminate arrest of tribal leaders who were raising issues of governance or the lack of it.
“People who have been working amongst the tribals for decades are now being victimized, in the name of curbing Naxalite (Maoist) activities in the state.”
He alleged that the government was clamping down on tribal leaders who are working to get them legal rights over the forest lands under the central government act.
“They are being arrested by the police on the pretext that they were Naxalites (Maoists). This must be stopped immediately,” he demanded.