In the wake of the recent Muzaffarnagar riots, “rise” in the communal clashes across the country dominated the National Integration Council meet on Monday with the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asking political outfits not to try gain political mileage out of communal strife.
However, the Gujarat chief minister and BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, Mr Narendra Modi, BJP chief ministers of Chhattisgarh and Goa, Mr Raman Singh and Mr Manohar Parrikar, were missing from the crucial meet where misuse of social media to flare up communal passion came under severe attack.
While Tamil Nadu chief minister J. Jayalalithaa and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee also stayed away from Monday’s meet, former Andhra Pradesh chief minister and Telegu Desma Party chief N. Chandrababu Naidu walked out protesting the Centre’s decision to carve out Telengana. However, if Mr Modi and two BJP chief ministers were conspicuous by their absence, the so-called “Modi-baiter” in the BJP, Mr L.K. Advani, and his “latest” protégé, Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, attended the NIC. The only BJP chief minister to attend the NIC meet, Mr Chouhan’s advice to the political class was: “Politicians should focus more on development politics instead of vote-bank politics.’’
In all, 16 chief ministers attended the NIC meeting. On Mr Modi’s absence, Union home minister Sushilkumar Shinde said that the Gujarat chief minister should have attended the NIC meet as it was an important meeting taking place after two years. He pointed out that the meeting was not to ‘’score points’’.
However, a tirade of allegations flew between the political parties as they entered into a political slugfest over the Muzaffarnagar riots at the day long meet. SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav took on BJP’s incharge for Uttar Pradesh Amit Shah without naming him in his speech.
RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav hit out directly at the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate saying, “Mr Modi purposely didn’t come because he didn’t want to face uncomfortable questions. I have asked all secular parties to come together in 2014. I see India being polarised before 2014. Amit Shah, who was the manager of Gujarat riots, is responsible for the Uttar Pradesh riots. He has now reached Bihar. I see riots across the country.”
The NIC meet was convened in the backdrop of communal clashes in Muzaffarnagar in UP that witnessed killing of nearly 50 people and over 40,000 displaced. UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Union ministers, Leaders of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, chief ministers and lieutenant governors of UTs attended the meet.
Asserting that a national effort by people of all sections of society, including politicians can prevent incidents of communal violence, Dr Singh said threats from communal, separatist and obscurantist forces to the nation’s integrity must be dealt with firmly and promptly.