GUWAHATI, May 13:
BJP will soon approach the National Human Rights Commission seeking constitutional protection for Hindu refugees from erstwhile East Pakistan and Bangladesh, party President Nitin Gadkari said today.
“Denial of citizenship to Hindu refugees is a violation of human rights. We’ll file a petition with the National Human Rights Commission so that such victims of persecution who have fled to India can secure their rights as per rules of the Constitution”, Gadkari told reporters here.
“As per the Constitution, any Hindu who is forced to flee any part of the world and comes to India on account of persecution has a right to Indian citizenship. That is a constitutional duty for us”, he said.
Accusing successive Congress-led governments at the Centre and in Assam of committing injustice to Hindu refugees by denying them citizenship, he said, BJP Human Rights Cell head Avinash Rai Khanna would soon visit Assam for doing ground work for the petition which was expected to be filed next month.
“The state BJP leadership has been directed to start a mass movement in Assam against the step-motherly treatment to Hindu refugees by the government”, Gadkari said.
BJP has also appointed a legal committee to study the feasibility of approaching courts on violation of constitutional rights of Hindu refugees.
“BJP General Secretary Ravi Shankar Prasad will head the three-member committee. They will visit the North East besides Assam to prepare a legal case”, he said.
“I’ll also ask Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj and Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley to raise the matter in Parliament”, Gadkari said.
The BJP chief, however, denied allegations that his party adopts different standards for Hindu and Muslim immigrants.
“We are not against any religious group but believe in justice and equality of all. We are not against indigenous Muslims. But government should deal with illegal immigrants as per the Constitution”, Gadkari said.
He charged “all Congress leaders from Pandit Nehru to Manmohan Singh and Tarun Gogoi have betrayed Hindu refugees who fled erstwhile East Pakistan. They are being humiliated by having their names in the D (Doubtful)-Voter list”.
Gadkari said BJP MP from Silchar Kabindra Purkayastha had submitted a private members Bill in the Lok Sabha seeking constitutional protection for refugees.
The BJP chief also accused the central government of failing to take proper account of the plight of Hindu minorities in Pakistan.
“Our party is worried over the injustice and atrocities being perpetrated on the minority Hindus in Pakistan. Their protection is our moral responsibility. The Hindu women of Pakistan have faced serious injustice and atrocities”, he said.
He was referring to recent instances of forced conversion of Hindu women in Pakistan. (PTI)
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