Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Ramdas Athawale said police should investigate into the mob attack on the students of JNU in New Delhi on Sunday night which left several students and teachers injured.
Addressing a media conference here on Monday, Mr. Athawale who is also the National President of Republican Party of India (A) said that “Our party demands that those responsible for attacking the JNU students should be arrested”.
Mr. Athawale was here to participate in the All India Working Journalists Association conference and also address a general body meeting of his party. He said that the Citizenship Amendment Act was not against Indian Muslims and it would not discriminate against them.
Misconceptions being created
Muslims who stayed back in India after partition should not have any concerns about the CAA and Modi government was not discriminating Indian Muslims against Hindus or other religious groups but Congress and other Opposition Parties were creating misconceptions among Indian Muslims, he asserted. The Modi government had been implementing several programmes like Ujwala, Awas and Jan Dhan Yojana and it benefited eligible people from all communities — both Hindus and Muslims, he said.
Reiterating that the Republican Party of India was supporting both CAA and NRC, he said if any one had misgivings about the word ‘Muslims’ being not included in the CAA, they could represent to the Union government and the Law and Home ministries would look into it. The CAA mentioned that non-Muslim minorities of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who migrated to India before the notified cut off date to escape persecution in those three countries would be considered for citizenship, he said. A blanket citizenship could not be given to Muslims from those three countries because of security concerns for the country.
He expressed happiness that though the members of Muslim community came out after the incident in Jamia Milia University few days after the CAA was passed in Parliament, there were no community clashes any where.
When asked that many States were opposing NRC which required citizens to submit documentary proof of their citizenship which the poor or those in rural areas might not be able to produce, he said the government was not for driving away people.
RPI (A) to contest in ULB polls
The Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment has demanded that the State governments should give five acres of land to all landless poor irrespective of their caste to eliminate poverty.
Mr. Athawale reviewed implementation of social welfare programmes with State government officers here on Monday. He said State government should provide pucca houses to the slum dwellers. Union government was also focusing on providing pucca houses to the poor along with toilet facility.
He said it was brought to his notice that the SC and OBC students were not getting scholarships on time and said State government should ensure timely release of scholarships. He also assured to release any pending scholarship amount from the Centre.
On the ensuing municipal elections, he said RPI (A) has members from all communities and its party workers were present in every district and town. It hoped to contest municipal elections in alliance with the BJP or it would contest on its own.
