The Hindu : 'Poor response to rehabilitation in Gujarat'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Apr 20, 2002

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'Poor response to rehabilitation in Gujarat'

By Our Special Correspondent

CHENNAI April 19. No Gandhian or secular group had the courage to stand up and protest the Gujarat carnage, the All-India Secular Forum chairperson, Asghar Ali Engineer, told presspersons here today.

Mr. Engineer said he had studied the communal problems in Gujarat since 1969 and stressed that there were only lone voices such as that of the dancer, Mallika Sarabhai, protesting the carnage.

Mr. Engineer, who had toured Gujarat for a week, said people found it easier to collect money for the earthquake relief fund. But when it came to rehabilitation of the riot-affected, the response was poor.

His organisation would seek to reach out to various sections of the people to create an awareness about various aspects of communal conflicts. Because of the Gujarat experience, there would be a difference in the content of the programme, but its strategy would remain the same.

Though the Dalits and Muslims were supposed to be natural allies, the riots proved otherwise, he said. While it could be easy to mislead the Dalit masses steeped in poverty and illiteracy, the role of the Dalit leaders was dismal. They, along with the leaders from the far-right organisations — VHP and Bajarng Dal — were directing the fury of the masses at the Muslims.

Mr. Engineer said this was a State where the BJP was in power on its own. ``When you have a `pracharak' as the Chief Minister, this is what will happen,'' he said and added that the mere resignation of the Chief Minister was not enough. The whole Cabinet should be dismissed and the role of officials and Ministers enquired into.

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