Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 14: National Conference Provincial President, Devender Singh Rana on today decried the National Green Tribunal (NGT) directive on declaring route to Shri Amarnathji Cave Shrine on Kashmir Himalayas as ‘silent zone’, describing it infringement of religious rights.
“We respect judicial processes and have regard for NGT but expect as well that there should be no interference in the matters of faith”, Rana said at an impromptu press conference at Sher-e-Kashmir Bhavan here this afternoon.
Rana said the sentiments of a section of society have been hurt by this unjust directive which comes weeks after the NGT directive on reducing the number of pilgrims to Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine. “We fail to reconcile with one after another directive in recent weeks on the two important pilgrimages of Jammu and Kashmir”, he said and made a strong plea to Governor NN Vohra, who is also Chairperson of Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board and Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board to take up the issue with the NGT for corrective measures. He said the sensitive religious matters should be left to bodies concerned and every effort must be made to ensure freedom of practicing religion.
The provincial president described the pilgrimages to Shri Amarnathji and Shri Mata Vaishno Deviji highly sensitive and sacrosanct for the vast mass of Hindus across the country and hoped that NGT will reconsider and rescind its decision. “Let the Shrine Boards ensure ecology of yatra related areas”, he suggested.
To a question about BJP’s silence over this important issue, Rana said though the answer lies with the party, which is ruling the Centre and partnering the Government in the State, yet the ‘silence’ is intriguing. He said the directive of not chanting ‘Bum Bum Bole’ on the route to Shri Amarnathji Shrine has not gone well with the devout.
Rana also took the BJP head on for ignoring the NGT directive on reducing the number of pilgrimage to Shri Mata Vaishno Deviji Shrine on Trikuta Hills despite being in the Government. He asked the BJP to come clear and take a position on NGT directives.
Prominent among those present in the press conference were State vice president Thakur Kashmira Singh, senior leader TS Wazir, provincial secretary Sheikh Bashir Ahmed and provincial vice presidents, Jugal Mahajan, Gurdeep Singh Sasan and Choudhry Haroon.
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