Congress again reels out warning to Orissa govt

New Delhi, Oct 3 (UNI) The Congress today again warned the Orissa Government of strong measures by the Centre if it failed to make complete use of the powers available with it to control the continuing violence against the minorities.

"The Centre will use every constitutional and legal power available with it. Nobody needs to have any illusion that we will not exercise such powers," AICC Spokesman Abishek Manu Singhvi told mediapersons, while pointing out tht it was for the Centre to decide when and how to use its powers.

Asked if the Centre was preparing to invoke dismissal of the BJD-BJP government in Orissa under Article 356 of the Constitution, he said "we have sent strong advisories to the state government. We exercised one portion of our options." Asked if Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would visit Kandhamal, the scene of attack on minorities," Dr Singhvi asked "What is the state government doing there ?" Replying to a question on if the Congress-led government at the Centre was scared of banning Bajrang Dal, he said "there is a process of law to ban an organisation. The Centre has sufficient powers for the purpose and it will not hesitate to exercise them.

However, the process is not a simple one." In this context, he said a meeting of the Cabinet would be held soon to discuss the Kandhamal violence.

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