I/II. http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation/massive-uproar-in-parliament-over-shiv-sena-mps-forcing-fasting-muslim-staffer-to-eat_949507.html
Uproar in Parliament; govt says report regarding Shiv Sena MPs unverified New Delhi: Parliament was rocked on Wednesday over reports that Shiv Sena MPs allegedly forced a fasting Muslim worker to eat in the new Maharashtra Sadan, but government dismissed the allegations as "unsubstantiated" and said they need to be verified first lest they raise communal passions. The issue was raised in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha by opposition members who demanded action against the Shiv Sena MPs who vociferously denied the reports. After uproar by opposition, the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha witnessed brief adjournments as agitated members wanted to raise the issue which was staunchly opposed by the Shiv Sena. The Lok Sabha also witnessed a walkout by the Congress, NCP, Left, PDP and AIMIM. The Lok Sabha witnessed a storm as a BJP member Ramesh Biduri rushed to the well telling some in the opposition that "this is India. Those...Go out". The member later apologised after Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu disapproved his conduct. "We are dealing with a sensitive issue... Don't try to raise communal passions. Nobody knows the truth. Whether the incident has happened or not, we are not sure," Naidu said seeking to douse flared passions. He said the the government is in no way connected with the "unsavoury" incident. "We need to enquire...Let us not send wrong signals to the country." Raising the issue during Zero Hour, Congress member MI Shanavas described the incident as "shocking" and said it is "cutting at the root of secularism. MPs who should be role models have become bad models...The faith of minorities has been tarnished. The House should condemn it." He also quoted reported statements made by the concerned employee Arshad. Defending the Shiv Sena MPs, Union Minister Anant Geete said "Those who want to respect the month of Ramzan should not make false statement in the House" triggering sharp protests from the Opposition. "Whatever the report has appeared is totally false and Congress is trying to tarnish the image of the Narendra Modi government," Geete said. In the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Prakash Javadekar said "It is an unsubstantiated report. We should not take it to the next level. Let it be ascertained. There are sensitivities involved." In the Rajya Sabha, Ali Anwar Ansari (JD-U) raised the issue after Zero Hour but Deputy Chairman P J Kurien said he will allow him after those who have given notices for mentions speak. Ansari was supported by Congress members and as he rushed to the well amid sharp exchanges between treasury benches and opposition, Kurien adjourned the House for 10 minutes. Later, Ansari said the incident is an insult to the Constitution which respects all religions and demanded action against the MPs. "Forcing roti into the mouth of a person observing fast is against the dignity of a person," he said. As the uproar continued, Kurien said: "It has to be ascertained whether it is fact or not. Government has assured that it will ascertain the issue and then come back to the House. Whatever the action to be taken under the law, the Government will take after that." In the Lok Sabha, Geete said Shiv Sena MPs staying at the new Maharashtra Sadan had gone to meet the Resident Commissioner to lodge their complaint against mismanagement there, but they could not meet him. As soon as the Lok Sabha assembled for the day, several Opposition members raised the issue and termed it as violation of religious beliefs. Members from Congress, RJD, Trinamool Congress and AIMIM were on their feet raising the issue. PDP members too were seen waiving a paper but they could not be heard in the din. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was present in the House when the issue was raised. Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge wanted the issue to be referred to the Ethics Committee. After the storm over Biduri's remarks, RJD member Pappu Yadav and AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi also rushed into the well. Shiv Sena members also rushed towards the well but stopped in the aisle and some BJP members, including Kirit Somaiya, were seen pacifying them. Lok Sabha was then adjourned briefly. Disapproving the conduct of Biduri, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Naidu said there is "need for maintaining decency and decorum of the House... We should respect each other". It was reported that a group of around 11 Shiv Sena MPs, apparently angry over not being served Maharashtrian food, allegedly forced a Muslim catering supervisor who was fasting for Ramzan to eat a chapati at new Maharashtra Sadan in the national capital last week. First Published: Wednesday, July 23, 2014, 12:38 II. http://www.firstpost.com/politics/force-feeding-muslim-shiv-sena-compares-incident-to-godhra-train-burning-1631855.html Force-feeding Muslim: Shiv Sena likens incident to Godhra train burning by FP Staff <http://www.firstpost.com/author/fp-staff> Jul 24, 2014 09:35 IST The Shiv Sena is facing criticism, after one of its MPs, Rajan Vichare force fed a fasting Muslim, allegedly to protest being served bad food in the Maharashtra Sadan in New Delhi. Now one MP has compared the incident to the Godhra train burning incident in Gujarat and claims that nobody is looking at the real reason for Vichare's actions. Shiv Sena MP Anandrao Adsul told *The Indian Express <http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/sena-wisdom-as-in-godhra-no-one-talks-of-real-reason/>*, "This is just like Godhra. Everyone forgot Godhra but only remembered what happened after that. Here too, everyone is talking about the incident, but no one is bothered about why it happened." The Godhra train burning incident in which 59 people were burnt alive and also had Kar-Sevaks (Hindu pilgrims on board) is widely acknowledged to be the trigger for the deadly 2002 riots in Gujarat. In this Sena Bhavan case, the MPs have alleged that they didn't know that the attendant was a Muslim or that he was fasting. Rajan Vichare, who was captured on camera, has tried to defend his actions saying he didn't intend to hurt anyone's religious sentiments, and that his actions were prompted by his anger at the quality of the food. "The facilities aren't proper at Maharashtra Sadan. This incident is being given a communal colour, we must not do so. It is the same thing as going to a restaurant. If you are served bad food, won't you call the manager and ask him to taste it? We did the same," he said. <http://www.firstpost.com/politics/sena-mp-force-feeds-fasting-muslim-a-curious-case-of-communal-chapati-1630795.html> The MPs have also denied IRCTC's claim that the employee, Arshad Zubair S, was wearing a name tag on his uniform. Vichare told *IE*, "You see the footage and then tell me yourself." Meanwhile Shiv Sena chief Uddav Thackeray has tried to do some damage control over the incident. He said, "There was no intention to hurt anybody's religious sentiments." According to PTI, Uddhav told reporters in Aurangabad, "This (uproar over the incident) is an attempt to silence Shiv Sena's voice. We are proponents of Hindutva but we don't have hatred for other religions." Other Sena MPs have called this incident an attempt to defame their party ahead of the upcoming Maharashtra elections. It's a conspiracy by Congress. The Resident Commissioner Bipin Mallick has backing of chief minister Prithviraj Chavan. This is an attempt to defame Shiv Sena in view of the upcoming assembly elections," Vinayak Raut, a Shiv Sena MP told *Firstpost*. <http://www.firstpost.com/india/forcing-fasting-muslim-to-eat-shiv-sena-plays-victim-blames-congress-1630761.html> Denying the alleged incident, Raut said, "We didn't even know that the supervisor is a Muslim. The facilities provided by the canteen are very poor. While the rooms given to us are from general category, the VVIP rooms are allotted to the MPs from other states. The officials are using the 'Maharashtra Sadan' as lodging and boarding." Shivajirao Adhalrao Patil, Shiv Sena MP from Shirur Lok Sabha constituency in Pune, also denied the incident. "It is a political conspiracy against us. No such incident has happened on that day," Patil said. "We went to the canteen to show the poor quality of the food. We were trying to pull apart chapatti into two pieces but failed to do so. So, we asked the supervisor to eat it but we didn't force him to eat the chapatti," he added. As to the 'real reason' behind the incident, the *Indian Express *report has quoted sources in the IRCTC as saying that the MPs were angry because they didn't get Maharashtrian food like vada pav etc, and were upset with 'North Indian' being served. -- Peace Is Doable -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/greenyouth. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
