Killing of two cattle traders in Jharkhand last month reverberated in Rajya Sabha today with the Opposition alleging an "organised design" to create "communal polarisation", a charge rejected by the government which said a "wrong impression" was being created against the BJP and the Prime Minister.
Calling the government's attention on the issue, CPI(M) MP Tapan Kumar Sen asked the Centre: "Can you wash your hands off it by saying it is a state subject?
"The issue has a clear political content. It is an organised design of pouncing upon cattle traders by an organised group to bring about a different kind of polarisation."
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Maintaining that the incident was "an organised, premeditated action and not some spontaneous incident," Sen referred to incidents in Haryana and other parts, saying "in every such case there is a communal angularity by some fringe group belonging to your organisation -- some Sena or the other.
"The question is whether you can continue to utilise these fringe groups to bring about polarisation and divisiveness in the polity."
Rebutting the charge, Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju rued that a "wrong impression is being created" in the country against the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and claimed that communal incidents have come down in January- March this year compared to a year-ago.
Rejecting charges about BJP hand behind such incidents, he said those involved in the Jharkhand murder have a criminal record and they were not part of the BJP.
"How can you say that BJP made that environment? We acted immediately after the death of the cattle traders," Rijiju said, as Opposition members reminded him that there was a BJP government in Jharkhand.
Observing that cattle trade was "not prohibited in India and it has been going on for ages", Rijiju said maintaining a peaceful environment and communal harmony is not just the job of the government, but also of the political parties.
Two Muslim cattle traders were found hanging from a tree in a village in Latehar in Jharkhand last month after which police arrested some persons including one with links to a local right-wing outfit.
Putting the onus on states, Rijiju said in a statement that police and public order are state subjects and state governments were primarily responsible for prevention, detection, registration and investigation of crime and prosecuting the criminals.
The CPI(M) leader also said the manner in which the
minister has responded showed he "undervalued and undermined" the issue "may be with a deliberate motive". Sen also said that besides Muslims, dalits also bore the brunt of such attacks.
Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Gulam Nabi Azad said the acts of projecting a particular community that it trades in cattle for slaughtering them is "wrong". "We should not divide cattle trade on religious lines," Azad urged.
Rijiju said the government was bound by the Constitution and not crossing its boundaries and added that false allegation are being levelled against the party.
Citing examples, the Minister said, about a week before Delhi assembly elections, TV channels carried reports on attacks on churches. "When we inquired about them, only three instances came to light, that too individual cases and not organised. Such incidents also sully the image of the country," Rijiju said.
On incidents like the lynching of a Muslim over the beef row in Dadri in UP in September last year, he said the Centre had assured the state government of all possible help.
When such incidents happen, Rijiju said the Centre cannot go in and take over the State's role of lodging FIRs or investigating as this is a state subject.
Criticising the social media, the Minister said that pictures and other information were being propagated on social media platforms which were inciting the public.
"Wrong impression is being created in the country against the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he said.
BJP member M J Akbar, who is a member in the Upper House from Jharkhand, insisted that "an individual's sin should not be transferred" to the party and claimed that the principal accused in the Latehar incident "belongs to a regional party in Jharkhand which is not part of the ruling allinace".
Cautioning against attempts of "malicious maligning" in such incidents, he said there is instead a need to introspect why these things have happened and recalled how Mahatma Gandhi had in riot-hit Noakhali talked of 'Madina Model' calling for respecting the places of worship of others.
Azad said the states should be instructed to arrest
members of such fringe groups (senas) that are formed in several states like Maharashtra.
"These senas are targeting a particular community and stopping them from carrying out their trade. This should stop. States should be asked to strictly act against such senas and arrest them," he added.
Recalling an earlier remark of Rijiju on the beef issue, Ghulam Rasool Balyawi (JD-U) made a satiric remark saying "your senior minister said those eating beef should go to Pakistan. So first throw out your own minister who had said he would consume beef. First throw him out of Cabinet and then throw him out of the nation."
Latching on to the issue of killing of cattle traders, D Raja (CPI) pointed fingers at a number of similar incidents and said "what is happening in this country is nothing but communal fascism" and asked the government whether it justified the killings of Muslims and Dalits.
He said such incidents were not just related to police and public order and asked "how come in the name of beef eating and cow, Muslims and Dalits are being attacked. How can somebody take in their hand the right to prescribe others what to eat or what not to eat? What they are doing in the name of cow and beef eating is violation of the Constitution."
To this, Rijiju said in any incident or violation of law, FIRs are registered, probe is carried out and action taken and it is expected to be carried to its logical conclusion. The Central police forces are made available to states on the request of the state governments.
Giving details of such incidents, Rijiju said there were 13 instances relating to cow and beef-transport, resulting in Hindu-Muslim communal incidents in 2015 and eight in 2016.
In 2015, such incidents have been recorded in Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana, Jharkhand, Odisha, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab.
This year so far, such instances have been recorded in Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Odisha and Uttar Pradesh.
