Bhagwat affair Dangerous portrends Call for united action Against communal forces

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CPI(M)has called upon the Left and democratic forces in the State to unite against the fascist forces perpetrating attacks on the minorities during the last three months in a planned manner . The intelligensia too has to play an active role in making people aware of the perils of religious bigotry.

CPI(M) West Bengal State Committee Secretary, Anil Biswas said in a statement issued in Calcutta on Sunday that the latest incident in the series of attacks of the communal forces was in Keonjhar in Orissa on Friday night when a Christian missionary and his two young sons were burnt alive by one of the RSS outfits.For the last three months , with direct aid and support of the BJP-led government at the Centre, the RSS, the Bajrang Dal and the Viswa Hindu Parishad -Hindu Jagran Manch, , all communal outfits-had been conducting murderous attacks on the Christians and dalits. On Friday midnight the militant Hindutva supporters of the Bajrang Dal on the forecourt of a church at Mohanpur village under Anandpur police station in Keonjhar district of Orissa , burnt to death Christian missionary Graham Stewart Steins and his two young sons by setting the jeep in which they were sleeping , on fire.

The jeep was doused with petrol before the heinous attack. This diabolic murder came close on the heels of raids and attacks on the Christians in Gujarat. No civilized society could ever dream of such adastardly act. These communal outfits were launching these attacks on the Christians and raiding churches continually, Biswas said adding that four nuns had been assaulted by these people. These militant elements of Hindutva in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra were also in a communal frenzy perpetrating attacks on the minorities.

The CPIM) State Secretary singled out Viswa Hindu Parishad leader, Mr Ashok Singhal for shamelessly making a statement that the attacks were a part of jehad against religious conversions. Even Biswas said, Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee has virtually strengthened the hands of the communalist forces by calling for a national debate on religious conversions after his return from Dangs district in Gujarat.
He said all these developments led to conclude that each of the attacks had been unleashed with the direct help and provocation from the BJP-led government at the Centre. Even though the Central government promised to take appropriate actions against the culprits the criminals they were still at large in states like Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. The Shiv Sena's threat to disrupt the current India- Pakistan cricket matches was also an example of religious bigotry.

He said that primary ploy of the fascist forces and outfits was to create an atmosphere of terror by launching attacks and thereafter by killings . The people would have to be alert against the grave dangers these acts pose to the nation. And the leftists and democratic forces would have to unite against this conspiracy.Biswas held the BJP-led government at the Centre responsible for the attacks on the minorities The Central government must own up. At the same time, Biswas said, people from all walks of life would have to be organized to face up to the communal forces and curb them.