President to oversee post-violence measures in Gujarat By P. Jayaram, Indo-Asian News Service
New Delhi, Aug 9 (IANS) Indian President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, who voiced his strong commitment to secular values while taking office, will visit Gujarat on Monday to learn about rehabilitation of people hit by sectarian violence. This will be the president's first trip outside the Indian capital after he was sworn in the 11th head of state here on July 25. In a decision that is likely to have political repercussions, the presidential office said Abdul Kalam would "learn personally" about the various steps taken by the Gujarat government to rehabilitate those hit by the nearly three months of sectarian violence that left about 1,000 people dead. Hundreds were also injured, many seriously, while tens of thousands lost their homes. Property worth billions of rupees was destroyed. An overwhelming number of the victims were Muslims. It was the worst communal violence in India in a decade. A statement from Rashtrapati Bhavan, or presidential palace, said the president would seek details about the measures taken both by the state government and non-governmental organisations. A Rashtrapati Bhavan official told IANS: "Abdul Kalam is the head of state and he wants to know what measures are being taken in Gujarat. He is also interested to know about post-quake measures. "It has nothing to do with elections or the BJP (Gujarat's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party)." The BJP, which heads India's ruling coalition, appeared stunned by the president's decision. Said its general secretary Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi: "The president is the first citizen of the country and he has the independence to do whatever he thinks is right. The BJP does not want to comment on this." Congress secretary Anil Shastri praised the president for his decision. "We welcome this visit. It shows the new president is seized of the problem that Gujarat has faced after the communal violence perpetrated at the instance of the Chief Minister Narendra Modi's government. "The president's decision to check the rehabilitation is a stand that all right-thinking people have taken - the opposition, the National Human Rights Commission, the National Commission for Women, rights groups and the media. "His decision clearly establishes that Abdul Kalam as president will act independently and will not necessarily be guided by a particular political party or, for that matter, by the ruling establishment." The Rashtrapati Bhavan statement said Abdual Kalam's visit was primarily to visit the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad that was set up by Mahatma Gandhi and to "draw inspiration from the Father of the Nation". It said the president wanted to undertake the trip before Independence Day (August 15) "since from his school days Gandhiji was his inspiration as a noble leader". Besides touring Ahmedabad and Bhuj town in the Kutch region, which was very badly hit by the 2001 quake that killed some 25,000 people, the president would visit a school and interact with children. He will also meet intellectuals, political leaders, technologists, industrialists and others and visit the house of Vikram Sarabhai, considered the father of India's nuclear programme and whom the president considers "his guru and a great visionary". The statement said the president had been closely associated with the earthquake rehabilitation work right from the time the disaster struck. Abdul Kalam was the presidential candidate of both Vajpayee's ruling coalition and most opposition parties barring the leftists. He trounced leftist nominee and veteran independent struggle heroine Lakshmi Sahgal to win the presidential poll. In his first speech as president, Abdul Kalam said: "I wish to emphasise my unflinching commitment to the principle of secularism, which is the cornerstone of our nationhood and which is the key feature of our civilisational strength." Abdul Kalam's comments came a day after outgoing president K.R. Narayanan, in his last speech as head of state, called upon Hindus, the majority community in India, "to speak out in the traditional spirit of the Hindu religion". --Indo-Asian News Service =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-W-E-B---S-I-T-E-=-=-= To Subscribe/Unsubscribe from GoaNet | http://www.goacom.com/goanet =================================================================== For (un)subscribing or for help, Contact: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Dont want so many e=mails? Join GoaNet-Digest instead ! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Help support non-commercial projects in Goa by advertizing!! * * * * Your ad here !!
