Damaging public property can't be allowed under the garb of protest: Mishra

Amid the ongoing against the Citizenship Amendment Act in several parts of the country, Rajasathan Kalraj Mishra on Friday said the protest should remain peaceful and it cannot be allowed to be a pretext to damage public property.

The governor also said if the state government has any difficulty in implementing the law, it can hold a dialogue with the Centre.

Mishra made the remarks while addressing a press conference here on completion of 100-day of his tenure as the state governor.

Asked about the anti-CAA protests in many parts of the country, Mishra said, "Nobody wants ruckus. The protest should be peaceful. No one can be allowed to set (public property on) fire. No one can be allowed to damage public property."

Referring to the Preamble of the Constitution and Fundamental Duties of citizens, Mishra said damaging national property is against the Constitution.

 

He said, "If you want to protest, do it peacefully. Damaging public property cannot be allowed under the guise of protest because it is going to destroy democracy, he said.

Dubbing CAA as impractical, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has recently ruled out its implementation in the state.

Responding to a question, Governor Mishra said, "It is a matter between the state government and the Centre. I cannot comment on this. But, once the law has been enacted, it is the responsibility of the state (to implement it) and is also a constitutional process. The state government and Centre can hold a dialogue and find out a solution."

He further said, "I think there is a cooperative federalism (in the country) and there is no absolute autonomy (for states) because our Constitution is unified. Constitution is not of states but it is of the whole country, enacted by the Centre.

"If the state government has any problem about all the functions as directed by the Constitution, it can resolve it by talking to the central government."

"The law has been made and if any government has difficulty, it can talk to the Centre," he added.