SHILLONG, APR 19: The proscribed Hynniewtrep National Liberation Army (HNLC) has called twelve-hour bandh on April 22 demanding the ‘closure’ of all BJP offices in Khasi-Jaintia hills if the party do not stop the in what the outfit described as alleged ‘religious fanatic policies’.
The 5am to 5pm bandh will be in the six districts of Khasi and Jaintia Hills region to protest against the BJP’s political leadership at the centre and atrocities on minorities, HNLC publicity secretary Sainkupar Nongtraw said in a statement issued on Sunday.
Nongtraw said, “If the Bhartiya Janata Party does not stop its religious fanatics’ policies then it should close down all its party offices in Khasi-Jaintia Hills region,” adding “Candidates contesting elections (on a BJP ticket) shall bear the wrath of the HNLC.”
Stating that the BJP should be banned as an ‘unlawful organisation’, the HNLC has also said it protest against the upcoming visit of BJP president Amit Shah to the state on April 22.
The outfit said, “By appointing Amit Shah as its chief, the BJP has lowered the minimum moral qualification required for leaders to head major political parties in the country,” adding “A leader who faced serious criminal charges including murder, extortion and kidnapping was anointed as chief of a national political party.”
Referring to the first speech of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi made in parliament where he had stressed on deciding cases of MPs facing criminal charges within a year to free this important institution of democracy from criminals, the HNLC further questioned that by appointing an individual with criminal background, as party president–is Modi and the BJP indicating that office-bearers of political parties enjoy immunity from criminalization of politics?
“When an individual is facing such serious criminal charges, would it not have been appropriate for the main political party of the country to have waited for the outcome of the case against him before anointing him and showcasing the event as a big victory,” the outfit questioned.
Protesting against the BJP policies, Nongtraw said that the recent plan on ban of cow slaughter by the BJP shall snatch away employment opportunities from thousands of families in the Khasi land. He said, “Instead of that it should impose a ban on the sale of liquor and tobacco. Cow meat is a source of food but alcohol and tobacco does not have any benefits.”.
Alleging the BJP of promoting the concept of a Hindu nation, Nongtraw said, “The BJP will like to re-write the constitution for establishing a strong Hindu state.”
According to Nongtraw, the peace rally held in Shillong on Saturday where thousands of Catholics marched through the city streets organised to express solidarity with Christians who were being “targeted” in certain parts of the country is enough prove that the oppression on minorities has reached its peak.
“Before the Lok Sabha election, BJP sang the development tune, but after coming to power it was indulging in reconversion. The issue of Bangladeshi migrants has been one of the important policy planks of the BJP and VHP,” he said adding “They make a distinction between Hindu and Muslim migrants. They call Hindu as a “refugees” while the Muslim as infiltrators, though in fact most of them are economic refugees.”
The HNLC statement also said that the centre has again decided to extend the ban on the HNLC but failed to ban the RSS, VHP, and organisations of the Sangh Parivar.
“The Centre and state government has failed to appoint an interlocutor, whereas the HNLC had expressed its willingness to come under a unilateral ceasefire with the government, but it seems that peace is not an option anymore,” the outfit’s publicity secretary said.
The HNLC further maintained that media houses, newspaper sellers, hospitals, emergency services, ambulance, mortuary Van, shall be exempted from the purview of the shutdown.- By Our Reporter
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