Gujarat BJP MLAs, youth leader "incited" attack on North Indians: Cong releases video

Migrants from north India queue up to leave Gujarat

Counterview Desk
Senior Gujarat Congress leader Shaktisinh Gohil, currently in charge of Bihar and national spokesperson, All-India Congress Committee, has sent a legal notice to chief minister Vijay Rupani threatening criminal case and civil defamation suit for accusing him with "baseless statement" that he was responsible for attacks on north Indians in Gujarat.
The legal notice, which comes at a time when accusing fingers are being pointed to Thakor Sena activists and its leader Alpesh Thakor for the attacks, names two BJP MLAs and a BJP youth leader for inciting attacks on "outsiders". A popular OBC leader, Alpesh Thakor entered Congress ahead of the Gujarat state assembly polls late last year.

Text of the legal notice:

On October 16, 2018 many newspapers had published your statement that Congress in-charge of Bihar Shaktisinh Gohil was responsible for attacks on people of other states in Gujarat. This news has appeared in Gujarati and English newspapers. I also have video of your interview to ANI channel in which you had made a clear allegation against Congress in-charge of Bihar which is against me I firmly believe that any citizen of India has right to live in any state.
Gujarat also has culture of "Vasudhaiv Kutumbkam"- the world is one family. Gujaratis live in many states and countries. Similarly people of other states have constitutional right to settle in Gujarat. These are my clear views I was in Bihar when incidents of attack on people of other states took place in Gujarat.

Alpesh Thakor

The moment I got this news, I called a press conference and said that incidents of Gujarat were sad and unfortunate and they should not have happened. I had even appealed to you and the Prime Minister. to take steps to maintain law and order situation in the state. I had also made a public appeal for peace and harmony.
During the period when outsiders were attacked, I was not in Gujarat even for a day. I was in Bihar and Delhi and all my efforts were for peace and harmony in Gujarat. Evidence is available about my press conference in this regard in Bihar and Delhi.
Whatsoever has happened in Gujarat is shameful for all. I believe that as Chief Minister it is your duty to maintain law and order in Gujarat. Instead of making politically motivated statement against me in Uttar Pradesh you should have taken action against me by filing FIR against me and arresting me.
I can never think of any kind of disturbance in Gujarat. Since there was no evidence against me you could not file any FIR nor could you arrest me. But if you make a statement in UP that I am responsible for attacks on outsiders in Gujarat then t is clearly a deliberate attempt to tarnish my image to cause great political and social damage to me In fact you and other leaders of your party are directly responsible for attack on outsiders in Gujarat. Of this there are many evidence.
The video of your party MLA of Himmatnagar Rajendra Chavda clearly establishes that attack on outsiders was a well planned conspiracy. If you are not aware of this here is a link of the video on YouTube. This clearly shows that the BJP MLA gathered thousands of people for attack on people of other states. He is seen saying that he had a talk with CM Vijay Rupani and he had said that more than 20 per cent outsiders in any unit will not be tolerated in anyway.

He said that that he would conduct a survey in the factories and he took responsibility of taking action in the presence of all of them. I will mobilize youth for agitation, I will not tolerate anything, he is seen as saying. While the BJP MLA was making these threatening statements there were slogans of "Biharion ko bhagao" (oust Biharis) in the background. You can hear those slogans also.
Besides, an office bearer of Yuva BJP, Vikas Patel, is using his Facebook account to mobilize people to run a campaign against outsiders. His profile has photo with Narendra Modi. Your Prantij MLA Gajendrasinh had taken out a rally. A person who was seen closely with him is an accused having three FIR against him for riots in Sabarkantha.
Another person who got bail had thanked the BJP MLA through a post in social media. One of the accused for attack on people of Madhya Pradesh working in a chocolate plant of Amul has photographs with the BJP MLA on his social media site. You can see them. He is accused for attack on MP people living in Vaghasi village of Anand.
There is evidence of campaign being run by BJP workers and leaders. I am sending this to you. In view of this it is clear that your government has totally failed in providing jobs to youth of Gujarat. They are exploited through fixed wage system. You are vibrant for five industrialists but small business people are facing tremendous difficulty. People of Gujarat who lead in business have to bear a lot because of notebandi and GST. Farmers are not getting remunerative price, adequate light and water. Fertiliser has become costly.

Shaktisinh Gohil, Vijay Rupani

It is a well-thought-out planned conspiracy to divert attention of people from these basic issues. And you make allegations against me without any evidence is damaging my image and reputation. My public life s fully committed to ideology and total fulfillment of my legal constitutional duties. I have discharged my duties as a minister under two CMs, chief whip of Opposition, leader of Opposition and as chairman of Public Accounts Committee.
Presently, I am national spokesperson of my party, Bihar in charge and member of Working Committee. Your baseless allegations have caused damage to my prestige and political standing which cannot be compensated. People of other states have right to live in Gujarat and peace should be restored in Gujarat. But you have painted me totally opposite to my views.
Your statement has damaged my social and political prestige very much. No money can compensate this. Still as per my legal rights I will file a case against you for penal compensation and will also file a criminal defamation case as you maligned me with allegations without any basis.
If you do not make a statement expressing regret and denial for what you said within two weeks in the channels and publications before which you made those baseless statements, I will take criminal and civil action against you I am sending this legal notice to you through e-mail, courier and Register AD so that it is served effectively.
Unless you make a statement within two weeks clarifying that you have no role in attacks on outsiders in Gujarat and send me copy of the published statements, criminal and civil action will be initiated against you.
(Slightly abridged)

Comments

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

Two more "aadhaar-linked" Jharkhand deaths: 17 die of starvation since Sept 2017

Kaleshwar's sons Santosh and Mantosh Counterview Desk A fact-finding team of the Right to Feed Campaign, pointing towards the death of two more persons due to starvation in Jharkhand, has said that this has happened because of the absence of aadhaar, leading to “persistent lack of food at home and unavailability of any means of earning.” It has disputed the state government claims that these deaths are due to reasons other than starvation, adding, the authorities have “done nothing” to reduce the alarming state of food insecurity in the state.

What's behind Donald Trump's 'narco-state' accusation against Venezuela

By Manolo De Los Santos The US government has revived its campaign to label Venezuela a "narco-state", accusing its top leadership of drug trafficking and slapping hefty bounties on their heads for capture. This campaign, which only momentarily took a backseat, is a strategic fabrication, not a factual assessment. This accusation, particularly amplified under the Trump Administration, is a calculated smokescreen to justify a long-standing agenda: the overthrow of the Venezuelan government and the seizure of its vast oil and mineral resources. A closer examination of the facts reveals a country that has actively fought drug trafficking on its own terms and a US government with a clear and consistent history of destabilizing independent countries in Latin America.

Epic war against caste system is constitutional responsibility of elected government

Edited by well-known Gujarat Dalit rights leader Martin Macwan, the book, “Bhed-Bharat: An Account of Injustice and Atrocities on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-18)” (available in English and Gujarati*) is a selection of news articles on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-2018) published by Dalit Shakti Prakashan, Ahmedabad. Preface to the book, in which Macwan seeks to answer key questions on why the book is needed today: *** The thought of compiling a book on atrocities on Dalits and thus present an overall Indian picture had occurred to me a long time ago. Absence of such a comprehensive picture is a major reason for a weak social and political consciousness among Dalits as well as non-Dalits. But gradually the idea took a different form. I found that lay readers don’t understand numbers and don’t like to read well-researched articles. The best way to reach out to them was storytelling. As I started writing in Gujarati and sharing the idea of the book with my friends, it occurred to me that while...

New RTI draft rules inspired by citizen-unfriendly, overtly bureaucratic approach

By Venkatesh Nayak* The Department of Personnel and Training , Government of India has invited comments on a new set of Draft Rules (available in English only) to implement The Right to Information Act, 2005 . The RTI Rules were last amended in 2012 after a long period of consultation with various stakeholders. The Government’s move to put the draft RTI Rules out for people’s comments and suggestions for change is a welcome continuation of the tradition of public consultation. Positive aspects of the Draft RTI Rules While 60-65% of the Draft RTI Rules repeat the content of the 2012 RTI Rules, some new aspects deserve appreciation as they clarify the manner of implementation of key provisions of the RTI Act. These are: Provisions for dealing with non-compliance of the orders and directives of the Central Information Commission (CIC) by public authorities- this was missing in the 2012 RTI Rules. Non-compliance is increasingly becoming a major problem- two of my non-compliance cases are...

N-power plant at Mithi Virdi: CRZ nod is arbitrary, without jurisdiction

By Krishnakant* A case-appeal has been filed against the order of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and others granting CRZ clearance for establishment of intake and outfall facility for proposed 6000 MWe Nuclear Power Plant at Mithi Virdi, District Bhavnagar, Gujarat by Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) vide order in F 11-23 /2014-IA- III dated March 3, 2015. The case-appeal in the National Green Tribunal at Western Bench at Pune is filed by Shaktisinh Gohil, Sarpanch of Jasapara; Hajabhai Dihora of Mithi Virdi; Jagrutiben Gohil of Jasapara; Krishnakant and Rohit Prajapati activist of the Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a notice to the MoEF&CC, Gujarat Pollution Control Board, Gujarat Coastal Zone Management Authority, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and case is kept for hearing on August 20, 2015. Appeal No. 23 of 2015 (WZ) is filed, a...

1857 War of Independence... when Hindu-Muslim separatism, hatred wasn't an issue

"The Sepoy Revolt at Meerut", Illustrated London News, 1857 By Shamsul Islam* Large sections of Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs unitedly challenged the greatest imperialist power, Britain, during India’s First War of Independence which began on May 10, 1857; the day being Sunday. This extraordinary unity, naturally, unnerved the firangees and made them realize that if their rule was to continue in India, it could happen only when Hindus and Muslims, the largest two religious communities were divided on communal lines.

Ground reality: Israel would a remain Jewish state, attempt to overthrow it will be futile

By NS Venkataraman* Now that truce has been arrived at between Israel and Hamas for a period of four days and with release of a few hostages from both sides, there is hope that truce would be further extended and the intensity of war would become significantly less. This likely “truce period” gives an opportunity for the sworn supporters and bitter opponents of Hamas as well as Israel and the observers around the world to introspect on the happenings and whether this war could have been avoided. There is prolonged debate for the last several decades as to whom the present region that has been provided to Jews after the World War II belong. View of some people is that Jews have been occupants earlier and therefore, the region should belong to Jews only. However, Christians and those belonging to Islam have also lived in this regions for long period. While Christians make no claim, the dispute is between Jews and those who claim themselves to be Palestinians. In any case...

Fate of Yamuna floodplain still hangs in "balance" despite National Green Tribunal rap on Sri Sri event

By Ashok Shrimali* While the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Thursday reportedly pulled up the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for granting permission to hold spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's World Culture Festival on the banks of Yamuna, the chief petitioners against the high-profile event Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan has declared, the “fate of the floodplain still hangs in balance.”

Counterview

Search This Blog