NAGALAND state BJP unit organised a dharna at Dimapur Railway Station on January 25 in protest against the statement of Union Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde who alleged the BJP and RSS as “Hindu party and saffron terrorist”. The State BJP unit demanded that the Union Home Minister should immediately withdraw his statement and apologise to the BJP and Hindu community or resign as the Home Minister. The dharna was led by Nagaland election in charge Shri PB Acharya, state president Dr M Chuba Ao and host of senior BJP workers.
The BJP also staged similar protests in Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur the same day. Party workers also burnt effigies of the Home Minister in various parts of Assam. BJP national secretary Shyam Jaju, while condemning the remarks of Shri Shinde, said in Guwahati that terrorism has no religion. “The BJP has 170 members in Parliament and is ruling in nine Indian states. The remark by Shri Shinde that BJP is patronising terrorism are condemnable,” said Shri Jaju.
At a meeting chaired by vice president Padmeswari Jamoh, the party took serious exception to Shri Shinde’s remarks. Terming the allegation ‘very unfortunate’ and ‘dangerous’, Arunachal BJP demanded that Shinde be removed from office, else he ‘tender an apology to the people of the country.’
Spokesperson of Assam unit of BJP, Shantanu Bharali, said Shinde’s recent remarks on BJP are not based on evidence, but he categorically said that there are plenty of instances which show how the Congress has been safeguarding terrorists over the years in India. “The Assam Pradesh BJP strongly condemns the remarks of Shinde. The BJP activists staged protests in various districts of the state in protest against the recent baseless and irresponsible remarks of the Union Home Minister against BJP,” said Shri Bharali. (FOC)
