Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Sept 15: VHP State president, Leela Karan Sharma has strongly condemned the incident of burning of shops and creating communal tension at Rajouri by miscreants, anti national and communal forces.
Talking to reporters here, today he said the story planted by the administration about that the incident was totally wrong. The administration had said that a section of people believed that the meat kept in the tempo traveler was of a cow. This was not basically fact, he added.
In fact, the tempo was carrying passengers as per routine and the tempo driver was a Hindu. The passengers boarded the tempo and when it reached near Panja Chowk two more passengers boarded it and they complained that there is a foul smell in the vehicle. The driver and passengers sitting in the tempo asked the passengers who were carrying the bag that what they had loaded in it. The passengers replied that it was meat of camel for which sacrifice was performed in the house of one Naib Tehsildar, Mr Tantray.
He said the driver and passengers who had boarded the tempo asked the other passengers sitting in the vehicle to put that bag on the roof of the tempo and there was alteration between them. Thereafter a contact was made to SHO Rajouri who came on the spot but in the meantime the passengers fled away and tempo was taken to Police Station Rajouri.
VHP leader said meanwhile, Mr. Tantray instigated the local Moulvi of a mosque and provocative slogans were raised from the mosque.
He said the administration did not take it seriously and the mob of thousands assembled in the area and they attacked the members of a particular community by targeted their houses and pelted stones on them.
The situation turned critical as the administration did not take any action in time. Even after the imposition of curfew some shops of Hindus were torched and still the administration remained a mute spectator, he added. Leela Karan Sharma, while condemning the role of both Naib Tehsildar and Moulvi said the antinational elements instigated the mob to attack the members of minority community and their business establishment so that they will be forced to migrate.
He said the administration has not taken any action against the people who have hurled a grenade on Budha Amarnath Yatra yet and if it remains the mute spectator and did not take any action this fire may spread to other parts of Jammu region.
He said VHP has restrained its cadre from any reaction as it will fulfill the objective of anti nationals who are hell-bent to insight communal violence in whole of the State to support the unrest in the Valley. He however warned the administration to book the culprits and pay compensation to the shopkeepers who suffered the loss.
Meanwhile, a delegation of BJP senior leaders led by MP Jugal Kishore Sharma and MLC Vibodh Gupta today visited the various parts of Rajouri town and took stock of the situation. The members of the minority community which met them expressed serious resentment over the prevailing lawlessness in the town.
They informed the BJP leaders that they were feeling insecure and scared as some miscreants are hell bent to disturb the peace in the region and they were involved in setting their business establishments on fire.
The visiting leaders were given a full account about the series of events which led to huge loss property of the minority community in the town. They said the matter started over a trivial issue between the driver of a tempo traveler and a passenger.
Later, the mob turned violent and attacked the minority property, set the shops and other business establishments on fire.
The BJP leaders said that minority community members accused the police and administration for their failure in taking timely action to defuse the situation and alleged that the SSP Rajouri also remained a mute spectator to this all.
However, both BJP leaders appealed the people to maintain peace at all costs and said the Government has taken the matter seriously. They also assured that the strict action will be taken against the culprits and enemies of peace will not be spared and adequate compensation will be provided to those whose property has been damaged.
Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee has also expressed serious concern over the situation in Rajouri town which has emerged there since yesterday following incidents of religious tension and huge loss to the some individual property.
In a joint statement senior leaders of PCC Ravinder Sharma, chief spokesman, of the Party, Shabir Ahmed Khan its general secretary, Ashok Sharma, ex MLA, Iqbal Malik member Executive, Ch Sain Abdul Rashid, president DCC Rajouri, have strongly condemned the incident and loss of property. They blamed Government for the prevailing situation and demanded adequate compensation to the affected people.
Hindu Raksha Samiti (HRS) has also strongly condemned the Rajouri incident . The HRS which met here today under the presidentship of Ram Paul Sharma strongly condemned the torching of business establishments of minority community in Rajouri. He said HRS has taken the issue very seriously, demanded a probe into the matter and action against the culprits. He also demanded that people from other countries including Bangladeshi and Myanmar be asked to leave J&K. He also demanded adequate compensation for the people whose property was torched in Rajouri yesterday.
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