Violence against minorities; nation witnesses signs of deeper threats: Samadani

New Delhi: Lok Sabha MP from Kerala’s Ponnani and Indian Union Muslim League leader MP Abdussamad Samadani said that the eviction of Muslims in Goalpara in Assam and the arrest of nuns at Durg railway station in Chhattisgarh are not isolated incidents but symptoms of a deeper crisis. The MP was speaking in the Lok Sabha, invoking Rule 377 in the lower house.

He said that the mentioned atrocities were committed by the government itself, which was supposed to ensure the safety of minorities. He alleged that what happened in Assam was not eviction, but eradication, as the families who used to sleep peacefully under the roofs of their own houses are now living under the ‘skies of disappointment’.

He pointed out that the nuns were arrested on the grounds that they had accompanied three women who had gone to Agra for work with valid documents. With the atrocious incident against the nuns, the rule of law disappeared, and mob anger took its place.

Samadani also quoted Lord Acton's statement, “The most certain test by which we judge whether a country is really free is the amount of security enjoyed by minorities.”

Meanwhile, Archbishop Mar Andrews Thazhath, President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI), on Friday urged both the Odisha government and the Centre to take strict action against those involved in the attack on Christian priests and nuns in Jaleswar.

“The priests and nuns had gone to attend prayer meetings and not for anything else. It is the responsibility of the state government and the Centre to take appropriate action against the attackers,” he said.

Archbishop Thazhath further alleged that the assailants first stopped the group’s vehicle, deflated its tyres, and tore their clothes. “The truth is that it is the Constitution itself that is being attacked,” he added.