Peace meeting ends without consensus on RSS route march in Chittapur
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Kalaburagi (PTI): The peace meeting convened by the district administration to discuss permission for RSS route march and similar rallies by nine other organisations in Chittapur on November 2 has failed to reach a consensus, official sources said.
The meeting was held as per the directions of the Kalaburagi bench of the Karnataka High Court, issued last Friday.
Chaired by Kalaburagi Deputy Commissioner Fouzia Taranum, the meeting was attended by representatives of 10 organisations, including the RSS, Bhim Army, Bharatiya Dalit Panthers, Hasiru Sene, Karnataka Rajya Chalavadi Kshemabhivruddi Sangha, Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha, and Gonda Kuruba ST Horata Samithi, among others, officials said on Tuesday.
According to official sources, several organisations demanded that the RSS conduct its route march carrying the national flag and the preamble of the Constitution instead of lathis (sticks) and the Bhagavadwaja (saffron flag). However, RSS representatives attending the meeting rejected this proposal.
While some organisations opposed granting permission to the RSS on the grounds that it is an unregistered organisation, others expressed concerns that a march featuring lathis could lead to law and order issues and provoke tensions, they said.
RSS representatives maintained that they had the right to hold a peaceful route march as per their traditions. In response, the Bhim Army and other groups said they would organise their own route marches on the same day if the RSS refused to replace the lathis and saffron flag with the tricolour and the preamble.
This led to heated exchanges, forcing the meeting to end abruptly.
The issue began when authorities in Chittapur, the home constituency of Minister Priyank Kharge, denied permission for the RSS route march on October 19, citing "potential law and order concerns."
The Chittapur Tahsildar had noted that the Bhim Army and other organisations had also written to authorities stating their intent to hold marches on the same route and on the same day.
However, on a petition filed by Ashok Patil on behalf of the RSS, the Karnataka High Court directed the group to submit a fresh application seeking permission to hold the march on November 2. The court also asked the authorities to review the application and submit a report by October 24.
Subsequently, on October 24, the High Court instructed the district administration to convene a peace meeting with all concerned parties and attempt to reach a consensus, and to submit its report by the next hearing on October 30.
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BJP to fight Assam polls on twin planks of development, secure state
Guwahati (PTI): In a bid to win the Assam Assembly elections for the third time in a row, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday advised the state BJP brass to fight on twin planks: development and a secure state.
Shah, who wound up a two-day visit to Assam, held a nearly two-hour-long meeting with senior leaders of the BJP state unit at the party headquarters here, with a focus on discussing strategy for the state elections, expected in March-April.
Briefing reporters after the closed-door meeting, BJP Assam president Dilip Saikia said, "Development and a secure Assam will be our twin electoral planks."
He also said that Shah, known for his expertise in electoral politics, has offered valuable suggestions, and based on it, an action plan to retain power in the state will be formulated soon.
“Discussions were held in detail on our organisational and political calendars. Shah ji offered some very valuable suggestions, and we will implement those at the earliest…We will share more details on the action plan soon,” Saikia said.
He further said that the Union minister exhorted the state party leadership to ensure that not only do they secure a ‘massive landslide victory’ but also bag more seats than in the previous election.
The BJP currently leads a coalition government in Assam with the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and United People's Party Liberal (UPPL), while the Bodoland People's Front (BPF) has also extended support.
In the 126-member Assembly, the BJP now has 64 legislators, while its allies AGP, UPPL and BPF have nine, seven and three memnbers, respectively. In the opposition camp, the Congress’ strength is 26, while AIUDF has 15 members and CPI(M) one. There is an Independent legislator also, belonging to Raijor Dal.
Saikia said that the party will continue to contest the state polls in coalition with its NDA allies, which was also favoured by Shah.
Dismissing reports of chinks in the ruling coalition, the Lok Sabha MP said, “As far as the NDA is concerned, we are united in Assam. There could be discussions about some issues on individual party forums.”
The saffron party has maintained that its alliance with the regional parties will continue, and formalities like seat-sharing arrangements are being worked out.
Shah, who was on his second visit to the state within a month, attended two other events in Dibrugarh and Dheamji earlier in the day. He left for West Bengal after the meeting at the Guwahati state party headquarters.
