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As bulldozer politics enters Delhi, Congress accuses BJP of bigotry

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 Ahead of the Delhi civic polls, bulldozer politics has entered the national capital both physically and politically. The BJP, AAP and the Congress are at loggerheads since the BJP ruled civic body in Delhi started bulldozing illegal structures in Jahangirpuri and then initiating an anti-encroachment drive in places like Shaheen Bagh.

The Congress and AAP local leaders have opposed the drive in Shaheen Bagh but the Congress is more vocal than Delhi’s ruling party, the AAP. However, on Friday Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia of the AAP wrote a letter to the Union Home Minister asking that the demolition drive be stopped as it will affect 60 lakh people.

Congress General Secretary Randeep Surjewala reacting to the drive said, “The bulldozer of bigotry, superstition, sectarianism, fanaticism, injustice and intolerance heaped upon the Nation by the BJP government has to a large extent trampled upon India’s march ahead.”

“The issues of Development-Progress-Prosperity-Education-Schools-Roads-Hospitals-Infrastructure-Industry-Employment-Agriculture are no longer electoral issues in our country.”

He said that the BJP is not looking at the issues which are relevant to the country. The “BJP sponsored issues are Shamshan/Kabristan, Bulldozer, Loudspeaker, Mandir vs Masjid vs Church vs Gurudwara, changing names of roads and monuments, creating division on the basis of clothing and food habits.”

The politics of bulldozers which started from Uttar Pradesh is taking a pan-India turn with many states ruled by the BJP initiating this from Assam to Madhya Pradesh. However the BJP has defended this move of bulldozers. BJP leader Adesh Gupta blamed the “Bangladeshis and Rohingyas for the violent clashes”, and asked the North Delhi Mayor to remove illegal encroachments in the area. Later he also asked the other two Mayors to remove the encroachments.

However, it is not that there is no opposition. More than a dozen civil society organisations and political parties took out a procession on April 11 to Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal’s residence protesting against the anti-encroachment drive in the national capital.

Holding placards and raising slogans, as the citizen groups marched ahead a large police force stopped them much before the road leading to the LG’s residence. The protesters also shouted slogans against “rising” communalism.

The protesters also included Left wing organisations such as the CPI, CPI(M), CPI (ML), AIFB and RSP.

All India Kisan Mahasabha Secretary Purushottam Mishra told IANS: “This is a demonstration to protest action against the poor of the country. This is not an action against illegal encroachments but an attempt to divide the Hindu and Muslim communities and a campaign for corporates to loot the common man.”

“The government is trying to distract the common man by raising communal politics. We will raise our voice against it across the country. We shall organise demonstrations throughout May,” he said.

However the Congress and the AAP were caught unawares as the BJP seems to have set the agenda for the MCD polls through Shaheen Bagh — famous for its month long anti-CAA protest.

Local AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan was arrested on Thursday for blocking MCD officials, but Congress leaders in Shaheen Bagh continue to accuse the BJP and the AAP of ‘fixing’. Khan was granted bail on Friday.

It blamed the civic body and staged high octane protests after a MCD team reached Shaheen Bagh to raze “illegal” structures in the area on Monday. Congress leader Parvez Alam Khan, Vice Chairman of the Delhi Congress’ Media Department, who was detained by the police said that the local MLA came late after the Congress started protesting; he should have spoken to the administration but “the AAP and the BJP are in match fixing”.

“Why is Adesh Gupta (Delhi BJP chief) issuing orders, this means the mayors are incompetent,” he said.

disaster

Mumbai’s Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Sudhakar Pathare, who was posted in the Port Zone, passed away in a road accident on Saturday.

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Pathare had visited Hyderabad for training. He was on his way to visit a temple with a relative when the accident occurred. Both Pathare and his relative lost their lives in the crash.

Mumbai Police have been informed about the incident.

More details are awaited.

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Maharashtra

Order to demolish the tomb of Hazrat Syed Bale Shah Baba in Mira Bhayander

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Mumbai: The state government has issued an order to demolish the four hundred year old dargah of Hazrat Syed Bale Shah Peer Rahmatullah Alaih located in Mira Bhayander. Mira Bhayander Municipal Corporation has sent a letter to the collector declaring this dargah illegal and ordered action against it. As the dargah is located on forest land, communalists had started demanding the demolition of the dargah. In the House, Darranjan Daukhre had also demanded action against the dargah, after which now the state government has ordered to run a bulldozer on the dargah. An order has also been issued to remove and demolish the dargah by May.

Dargah trustee Amjad Sheikh said that this dargah is ancient and this order is illegal in itself. In this case, communal forces had launched a campaign against the dargah, after which this order was issued.

There is a dargah on the beach and citing the threat of terrorist and illegal activities and the presence of terrorists here, there was a demand to demolish the dargah. The dargah is close to the sea and in such a situation, the threat of a terrorist attack on Mumbai from the sea has been expressed, while the dargah administration has clearly denied this and said that communal organizations are running their agenda against the dargah and there is no such threat. Muslims have opposed this decision of the government and Muslims have also expressed their displeasure and anger over it.

The trustee says that this dargah is ancient and earlier the collector and the municipal corporation had given a notice, after which the illegal shed and other premises were demolished here and the dargah administration has taken this action at its own level. Now an order has been issued to demolish the dargah itself.

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National News

Congress MP Imran Masood calls for banning liquor during Navratri

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Saharanpur, March 29: Congress lawmaker Imran Masood said on Saturday that not just meat shops, liquor establishments should be shut during the nine-day festival of Navratri and called for embracing and promoting the spirit of brotherhood and communal harmony.

“Everybody is demanding a ban on meat shops during Navratri. Why is no one asking for a ban on liquor shops? Why is there no outpouring on the free flow of liquor during Navratri? Will this not spoil the purity and sanctity of the festival?” Saharanpur MP said in a special interaction with media.

The Congress Parliamentarian said that peaceful celebration supersedes everything, and it is incumbent upon all communities to maintain decorum during festivities and also make certain sacrifices, be it Eid or Navratri.

Notably, Eid-ul-Fitr and Navratri are coinciding on the same day this year. Both festivals are set to fall on Monday, with little possibility of change in the Eid schedule on account of moon sighting.

Days ago, the Congress MP also extended support to the demands of a meat ban during Navratri celebrations. In an apparent message to the Muslim community, he said that nothing would change if one did not eat meat for ten days.

“What matters above everything is the peaceful co-existence of communities. At no point in time, the differences over food preferences lead to communal strife,” Masood told newspersons.

Congress MP, when asked questions on the party’s strategy for the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, said that the Opposition is fully prepared to take on the Centre on “partisan legislation”.

“We opposed the amendments in the JPC meeting, tooth and nail. We will strongly voice our dissent in Parliament too,” he said.

Notably, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Friday that the Waqf Bill will not be delayed any further and will be reintroduced in the ongoing session of Parliament.

Only four working days of the Budget Session are left, as it concludes on April 4.

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