All parties in HP come together to quell communal hatred

With the unrest over the construction of an illegal mosque in the state capital spreading to other parts of the state, leaders of all political parties on Friday came together to urge people of the state to maintain peace and communal harmony.

Sukhu said it was wrong to give a communal colour to the protests as the mosque issue was not a religious problem and the Vidhan Sabha committee was not for mandir or masjid, but to frame a policy for street vendors.

The all-party meeting was chaired by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and attended by state Congress president Pratibha Singh, Naina Devi MLA Randhir Sharma, former CPM MLA Rakesh, CPM leader Surjit Singh Thakur and CPI leader KK Kaushal.

The CM said all issues concerning the unrest had been discussed and all parties had jointly issued a statement, urging people across Himachal to uphold the high traditions of peace and communal amity the state was known for. “Everyone felt that an early decision and settlement to the ongoing dispute at Sanjauli in Shimla must be found,” the CM said.

“Himachal is known for respecting every religion, faith and community, so we all must maintain communal harmony,” he urged. All leaders agreed that a street vendor policy must be framed by a committee — to be constituted by the Vidhan Sabha Speaker — so that the antecedents of all those coming to the state for work can be verified.

Sukhu said it was wrong to give a communal colour to the protests as it was not a religious problem and the Vidhan Sabha committee was not for mandir or masjid, but to frame a policy for street vendors. He also refused to be drawn into any controversy over the Congress or the BJP being responsible for it, stating that it was better to forget what anyone said in the past, as now, everyone had agreed to forge harmony.

The CM assured that action against any illegal construction would be taken strictly as per record and law, even though some Muslim representatives had offered to demolish the illegally raised portions of the mosque, be it in Shimla, Mandi or elsewhere. He said all parties had expressed their opinion and asserted that there was no restriction on anyone from any part of the country working here, but it must be within the framework of law. However, everyone must refrain from making any remarks that could hurt people of any particular community or faith.

He said Himachal believed in secularism and nobody, including the government, political leaders or locals had the right to hurt people of any religion or community. He said a problem was also being faced by locals when vendors sit in front of shops, making it difficult for people to walk on roads, which also needed to be checked.

Everyone had the right to work in the state, but within the framework of law and people had the right to stage peaceful protests, which was a sign of a vibrant democracy, the CM added.