BJP to protest demanding gallows for Afzal

New Delhi, Oct 26: The BJP today decided to launch its second phase of agitation, demanding the hanging of Mohammad Afzal, convicted by the Supreme Court in the Parliament attack case, from November 15 to 24.

BJP Spokesman Prakash Javadekar said that the meeting of the party's office-bearers decided to hold rallies at 14 places in the country, which witnessed by terrorist incidents, to highlight the menace of terrorism to the nation. ''The government's soft-pedaling of mercy petition of Afzal raised many issues,'' he said, adding the cities where the rallies are be held include Ayodhya, Varanasi, Hyderabad, Combatore, Kolkatta where the terrorists have struck in the past.

There had been umpteen number of mercy petitions by the convicts facing the gallows for their crimes against humanity and all petitions were disposed off within 24 hours after filing the petition but the government was yet to decide in 24 days after the clemency was sought, Mr Javadekar noted.

He said delay in hanging Afzal was not an issue concerning an individual but the determination of the national will to enforce the law in letter and spirit. ''Nobody in BJP pleaded for mercy for Dara Singh, convicted of murdering Christian missionary Graham Staines in Mayurbhanj in Orissa because nobody agreed with the killing. It was not the case with Afzal where people and organisations including Congress party were putting forth all kinds of perverse arguments to save him from the gallows,'' he said.

He said on November 27, the opening day of the Winter Session of Parliament, the BJP had decided to organise a huge rally in Delhi and the party had nomimated two senior leaders Vijay Kumar Malhotra and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi to coordinate with the Delhi unit.

On December 13, the BJP would felicitate the families of victims who fell of terrorist bullets in Parliament attack, he added.

UNI