Party delegation to visit riot affected people in Gujarat

New Delhi, Nov 27: A high-level delegation of Left and other non-BJP parties including the Congress and the SP, will shortly visit the riot-affected people in Gujrat to make an on-the-spot study in the context of National Minorities Commission's observation that rehabilitation measures for them had been ''inadequate.'' ''As many as 45,000 people, whose homes were burnt or otherwise destroyed in the 'mayhem and carnage' perpetrated by the rioters, with the support of the state government, are still outside the relief camps, CPI(M) leaders said today at a press conference in the Parliament precincts.

''We want to visit and make an on-the-spot study in the light of what the NMC has observed following its visit to Gujarat state where it found that even after three years of the ''mayhem and carnage'' in the post-Godhra period, rehabilitation has not taken place,'' party's floor leader in the Lok Sabha Basudeb Acharia said.

The senior CPI(M) leader said it was ''astonishing'' to see that while the affected people were ''running from pillar to post for the bare basic necessities of life,'' the Narendra Modi government had returned the funds granted by the Centre for the rehabilitation purposes.

In reply to a question relating to dismal economic and educational conditions even in Left-ruled West Bengal, party's deputy leader in the Lower House, Mohd Salim clarified that while it is true that WB is also among those states where the community was still laggging behind, ''but there always has been perfect social harmony.''

UNI