By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
Guwahati: BJP president Amit Shah on Wednesday was greeted with ‘beef party’ and a bandh during his maiden visit to Meghalaya.
The protestors comprising of different communities shouted slogans and displayed placards mocking the BJP president.
“We sing songs and had beef. We come here to defend our rights and freedom. We also call for arrest of Amit Shah for genocide and for demanding freedom for minorities,” said a protestor.
Thma U Rangli Juki (TUR), a group, which conducted a protest near MBOSE office also slammed the BJP for ‘attacking people’s freedom of culture, religion and faith through beef ban, vandalising of churches and mosques and their Ghar Wapasi campaign’.
TUR appealed to all religious leaders, civil society groups and regional parties of Meghalaya to boycott Amit Shah.
“We make this appeal because Amit Shah and his party are responsible for: 1. Anti-tribal, anti-farmer land ‘grabbing’ law; 2. Attacking people’s freedom of culture, religion and faith through beef ban, vandalising of churches and mosques and their Ghar Wapasi campaign; 3. Pushing for mining of Uranium against people’s wish; 4. Allowing corporates and multinational pharmaceutical companies to profit by decontrolling prices of essential medicines; 5. Budget reduction on fund meant for northeast India; 6. Continuing and enhancing extensive militarization and severe human rights abuse in the region as a result of the draconian laws like Armed Forces Special Power Act (AFSPA); 7. Attacking minorities and their places of worship; 8. Proposing to make school curriculum non-secular; 9. Weakening pro-people laws like Right to Information, NREGS etc; 10 Weakening protection for the workers by bringing labour reforms to benefit the corporate world; 11. Institutionalizing slave labour through their Make in India campaign; 12. Continuously demeaning women and sexual minorities and attacking their rights through their vulgar pronouncements regarding sexual violence; 13. Censorship and gagging of people’s freedom of expression,” read the statement of TUR.
The protestors came out with guitars and recited slogans against the BJP and its president.
Earlier, a banned armed group – Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) also called for a 12 hour bandh in the state.
“Cow meat is a source of food, but alcohol and tobacco do not have any benefits. The BJP, RSS, VHP and other allied organizations, without any shadow of doubts are using the culture and history of India to promote the concept of a Hindu nation and their purpose is to consolidate Hinduism around a specific religious ethos selectively chosen by political leaders,” HNLC, in a statement issued to the media in Shillong, said.
Shah will address party workers, meet representatives of various church bodies and civil society groups, apart from meeting leaders of some regional political parties. With protests against the BJP’s proposed ban on beef gathering momentum in the hill state, the Meghalaya BJP unit has also spoken against the proposed ban. “Consumption of beef is a major food habit of the tribal communities in Meghalaya.
Moreover, beef is a state subject. It should not be stopped,” BJP state president Khlur Singh Lyngdoh was quoted as saying by Indian Express.
A Meghalaya based website ‘Oh! Meghalaya’ reported of TUR organising a beef party which about 10 meters away from BJP’s office in Lachumiere.
TUR and the other NGOs members are also intending to throw a beef party in front of the convention hall to protest against BJP promotion of ban on beef and its alleged atrocities by the ‘Sangh Parivar’ on Christians and other minorities, it further said.
TUR leader Angela Rangad was quoted as, “We are here to protest the coming of Amit Shah to our peaceful and loving town as he ‘symbolizes’ the BJP and its anti-people policies which we will not tolerate”.
Terming the BJP and its functionaries as ‘ambassadors of hate’, Rangad also said, “The protest is also to show that we are against all of their hate campaigns like their Ghar Wapsi and policies of grabbing of farmers, the make in India campaign, which intends to make all of us slaves”.
The ban on beef and atrocities against the minority, they said that the BJP is actually attacking the rights of people targeting the lifestyle, food culture and habits and way of dressing.
(Photo credit: Ezra Rynjah)