It is time to teach a lesson to Pak: Siddiqui

Mumbai, Oct 3: Maharashtra State Minorities Commission chairman Mohammad Naseem Siddiqui today said the time has come to teach a lesson to Pakistan in the same manner as the United States did with al Qaeda in Afghanistan in the wake of the 7/11 blasts in the city in which 186 people were killed and nearly 700 injured.

Talking to reporters, Mr Siddiqui, the NCP MLA, alleged that on the one hand, the neighbouring country harps on continuation of the peace talk process and diplomacy while on the other, indulges in aiding and abetting terrorist activities in India.

''If the peace talks and diplomacy does not yield any results in a particular time, then India should take a stand against Pakistan similar to that of what the did with Afghanistan,'' observed Mr Sidiqui.

He said due to Pakistan's such activities, the minorities in India are being looked upon as suspects.

He said that while all the accused involved in the 7/11 Mumbai serial bomb blasts case were held under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), the accused in the Nanded blast case were arrested and released on bail because no stringent section of law had been applied to them. The Commission, therefore, recommends that MCOCA should be applied to the accused in the Nanded bomb blast case.

He, however, said that presently, there was no need for imposing any ban on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Bajarang Dal.

The Commission has observed that the Gujarat government proposes to introduce an anti-conversion bill and has included Jains and Buddhists in the Hindu community.

Mr Siddiqui said the Commission has sought the Central governemnt's intervention to ensure that such a bill, which encroaches on the religious liberties of another, should not be passed. The Commission has taken up the matter with the Central government and the National Commission for Minorities separately.

The Commission has recommended the postponemnet of the inauguration of the police station at Bhiwandi after the Ramzan Eid festival to ensure the maintenance of peace and communal harmony which the government has agreed to, he added.

UNI

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