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Mamata joins Oppn in criticising Communal Violence Bill, government says can re-draft

-The Indian Express

 

With UPA constituent Trinamool Congress today joining the Opposition in critising the Communal Violence Bill, the Union government said that the legislation as drafted by the National Advisory Council (NAC) was not final.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was among the eight CMs who stayed away from the National Integration Council (NIC) meeting held in Delhi today, with communal violence on its agenda. Narendra Modi (Gujarat), Nitish Kumar (Bihar), J Jayalalithaa (Tamil Nadu), Mayawati (Uttar Pradesh) and Parkash Singh Badal (Punjab) did not attend the meeting either, nor did Congress CMs Ashok Gehlot (Rajasthan) and Oommen Chandy (Kerala).

The meeting was held after a gap of three years.

As the Trinamool joined the criticism by a majority of the Opposition-ruled states, which have called the Bill a “dangerous” legislation that would hurt the federal structure of the country, the Centre said changes could be made in the draft in consultation with other ministries and state governments.

A senior Home Ministry officer told The Sunday Express that the NAC Bill would be sent to the Law Ministry and it would be asked to go through it “minutely” so as to ensure that there “remains nothing unconstitutional”.

The Trinamool’s stand that it couldn’t accept the Bill in its “present form” is at sharp variance with that of other UPA members. However, while Union Railway Minister and Trinamool leader Dinesh Trivedi told reporters his party was opposed to some provisions of the Bill, he wouldn’t give details of what these provisions were. West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra represented the state at the meeting.

In his closing speech, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said his government was committed to the federal structure of the country, which had served it well.

Union Home Secretary R K Singh told reporters after the meeting that the Bill would be finalised after taking the views of state governments. He was non-committal on whether the government would introduce the Bill in the Winter Session of Parliament.

“The Prime Minister said that we have taken note of the views expressed in the meeting. We will examine them and whatever Bill we bring, it will be in accordance with the Constitution,” the Home Secretary said.

At the meeting, opposition leaders and states ruled by NDA constituents, including Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar and Punjab, opposed the draft legislation.

Addressing the meeting, the Prime Minister acknowleded that a section of the country’s youth had been “radicalised”, and asked the NIC to send out a clear message that violence cannot be justified under any circumstances. “We need to identify and address the causes of radicalisation of some of our youth,” Singh said.

“The problems of terrorism and left-wing extremism constitute two major challenges that our society and polity face today. The terrorist attack in Delhi last Wednesday is a stark reminder to us that there can be no let-up in our vigilance,” he added.

Singh also stressed the need “to recognise that members of the minority communities often have a perception of being unfairly targeted by law enforcement agencies in the aftermath of unfortunate incidents”.

In his speech, Union Home Minister P Chidambaram decried “the use of violence” to make a point or to protest. “The biggest challenge is the use of violence as an instrument of protest or an instrument of change. Insurgency, militancy and terrorism threaten to unravel the idea of India,” he said.

Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj called the Communal Violence Bill a “dangerous Bill” that undermines the “federal structure” and violates the spirit of the Constitution.

A note circulated by BJP president Nitin Gadkari at the meeting said the Bill “not only usurps the power of the states but also encroaches on personal liberty and discriminates on the basis of caste and religion”. He said “India cannot countenance a situation where members of various religious denominations have a separate criminal law” and argued that the “proposal if implemented would be unconstitutional”.

In a note, CPM general secretary Prakash Karat demanded that “hate speech and demonisation of the minorities should be illegalised and action taken whenever required”.

CM Jayalalithaa, whose speech was tabled, opposed the Bill saying it curbs states powers, while Mayawati, whose speech was read out in absentia, questioned why it had not been circulated to the states so far.

Both Orissa CM Naveen Patnaik and Bihar’s Nitish Kumar raised the “objectionable” provisions. While Patnaik said these “directly affect the autonomy of states”, Nitish’s speech, which was read out, said the provisions create an “impression” that the majority community was “always responsible for communal incidents”.

Nitish specifically opposed the provision for promulgation of Article 355 of the Constitution, which gives the Centre a right to intervene, in a limited area during “internal disturbance”, saying it amounted to “unnecessary interference”.