Villagers 'forced' to work at mandir construction

Aizawl, May 14 (UNI) The Tuichawng village council in Chakma district council allegedly forced Mizos to work at a Buddhist mandir construction on May 6, Mizo Zirlai Pawl(MZP) sources said here today.

In a written complaint to Lunglei DC yesterday, MZP, the state's largest student body, alleged that the village council announced on the night of May 5 that each family had to work at the construction of a Buddhist mandir, failing which they would be excluded from the daily employment scheme under the Centrally-funded Bamboo Flowering and Famine Combat Scheme(Baffacos) funds.

''Forcing citizens to work on Sundays, when Christians go for their 'Sunday Mass', is clearly a violation of religious rights. It can be termed as a contempt towards the Mizo Christians as a whole,'' the MZP said in its statement.

The MZP has urged the district authority to take appropriate action to resolve the situation.

UNI