Amid debate on intolerance and beef consumption, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju today said no minister has the power to direct any citizen on what is to be done or what is to be eaten, remarking that discussions on food habits is not good for the country's health.
Rijiju also said that the country has not witnessed any rise in incidents of communal riots over the last 18 months, so the matter of "intolerance" does not require a debate.
Nationalist People's Party president P A Sangma said "the only visible thing of the Centre in Northeast is the Indian Army" as he asked the central government to act as an executive body in terms of creating infrastructure rather than merely financing it.
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Rijiju and Sangma were participating here in a session of Agenda Aaj Tak titled 'North-east Par Seedhi Nazar'.
Speaking in response to a question that should BJP members and MPs be sensitised about eating patterns in the country as a large number of people in North-east consume beef, Rijiju said, "Don't put me in dock by asking such a question. If media feels any statement is not right then don't show it. If you think any debate should not be run then don't run it.
"I went to Mizoram and I was having an interaction with the civil society there. They were so agitated that they said, 'We all eat beef. So should we go to Pakistan?' I cited the Constitution and said as a minister I cannot direct anyone on what to do and what to eat.
"I explained them of constitutional protection," Rijiju, Minister of State for Home Affairs, said.
BJP leader and MoS Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi had in May remarked that those who cannot live without eating beef should go to Pakistan, a statement which evoked a lot of criticism.
Citing data, Rijiju added that figures suggested that there has been no rise in communal riots in the country over past one and a half year.
"I have been a Minister of State for Home Affairs and by that virtue I also saw the data. No such thing has happened in last 18 months over which a debate is initiated. To have discussions on food habits of the country is not good for health of the country," he said.
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The Union minister further said that for people of northeast their issue may be the biggest for them, but for senior bureaucrats sitting in the Home Ministry it is one of the many problems they come across to, and that problem (of administration) needs to be addressed.
Rijiju said after the Narendra Modi government came to power, there has been a marked change in the Northeast policy as ministers are now directed to visit the region at regular intervals. "The Prime Minister has changed the slogan and approach from Look East to Act East," he said.
The Arunachal West MP added that Northeast Indians have an independent thinking and are very loyal to their motherland. They will feel good if there interests are given focus by the Centre and the media, he said.
NPP president Sangma who was also a panelist at the discussion said the Centre should also be an executive agency than just merely acting as one providing finance.
"The only visibility of central government in Northeast is its army. Many agencies like Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (MDONER), Northeastern Council, the Ministry of Finance and Planning Commission give funds to the state government.
"However, the work of these agencies is not merely providing money. They should also execute the work. The Centre pays the money and state government takes credit. The Centre has to be more visible. The projects go to the capital of the state, but the development should spread in other parts of the region," Sangma said.
When asked whether the Northeast does not have enough MPs to raise their issues in Delhi, Sangma replied in negative.
"We have 40 MPs in both the Houses. You don't need numbers to raise a good issue," he said.
