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Work to change perception of minorities: Minorities panel

-The Hindu

 

Government committed to protect minorities, says Gehlot

The National Commission for Minorities (NCM) has asked the Rajasthan Government to sensitise the police and the administration on the minorities and provide more representation to minority youth in the State police force.

Talking in the context of the September 14 violence near Gopalgarh Masjid in Bharatpur district which resulted in ten deaths, the Commission advised the government to take steps to “improve the perception of the minorities” towards it.

“There are lot of misgivings about the government after the Gopalgarh incident. The government is taking action, but I told Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot that the public is still not convinced,” said Commission chairman Wajahat Habibullah talking to The Hindu here on Friday.

Mr. Habibullah, accompanied by Commission members K.N. Daruwalla and Syeda Bilgrami Imam — who prepared a report on Gopalgarh soon after the incident -- are here to discuss the issue with the authorities and others concerned, including members of the Meo community.

“We had a good meeting with Mr. Gehlot and the senior officials. We could raise all the relevant points, including the misgivings and apprehensions conveyed to us by the affected persons and others,” Mr. Habibullah said. “The government is taking action but that is not enough as long as the public perception remains something else.”

The team, which arrived here on Thursday, has had meetings with groups and individuals, including Meos from Gopalgarh, representatives of Rajasthan Muslim Forum and People's Union for Civil Liberties. It is learnt that a group of Muslim leaders complained to the Commission about the “attitude” of the Governor, citing his response when they had met him on the issue of Gopalgarh recently.

The over two-hour-long meeting at the Chief Minister's Office was also attended by Home Minister Shanti Dhariwal, Chief Secretary S. Ahmad, Additional Chief Secretary C.K. Mathew, Principal Secretary (Home) G.S. Sandhu, Principal Secretary Minority Affairs, Rohit R. Brandon, Director General (Intelligence) Bhaskar Chatterjee, Bharatpur Divisional Commissioner Rajeshwar Singh, Deputy Inspector General of Police(Bharatpur range) Anand Srivastava, Bharatpur Collector Gaurav Goyal and Bharatpur Superintendent of Police Vikas Kumar.

Mr. Habibullah asked the government to make appointments to the State's Minority Commission, provide more representation to minorities in the police force and improve their over all employability. Police presence in the vulnerable areas should be strengthened and a dialogue should be established with police and the local population, he said.

“The government told us that the now-defunct Mewat Board will be revived for the development of the Meo areas. We suggested more educational facilities in the area, so that not only Meos but others there also get the benefit,” he said.

Mr. Gehlot briefed the Commission on the steps initiated after receiving its report on Gopalgarh, including the suspension of the then Collector and Superintendent of Police and the measures taken to provide relief to the affected. He promised introduction of more programmes for minority youth in the State and initiatives on the skill development and the livelihood front. He accepted the suggestion for more representation to the minorities in the police force, coming in the context of the allegation that police had acted in a partisan manner in Gopalgarh.

Mr. Gehlot told the Commission of his government's commitment to protect the minorities. “The government has been sensitive to such issues in the past as well,” he said. He talked about holding workshops at the State and district levels to sensitise the police.

The Commission was told that kin of eight of the ten victims have been given Rs.5 lakh each, while the claimants were being ascertained in the case of two others. Out of the 38 injured, 33 have been provided with relief and compensation. The process for providing a government job to one person from each of the affected family is on, while the orphaned children are being considered for scholarships.

* “Lot of misgivings about Government after Gopalgarh incident...”
* Muslim leaders complain to Commission about “attitude” of Governor