RSS calls for a ‘balanced view’ on cracker ban, bats for deporting Rohingyas
Bhopal, Oct 15: Touching two important current issues of Supreme Court ban on firecrackers during Diwali and granting refuge to Rohingya immigrants from Myanmar the RSS expressed the view that there should be 'balanced view' on cracker ban and supported the government on deporting Rohingya Muslims.
It may be mentioned that the Supreme Court banned the sale and use of crackers in the NCR during Diwali festival. People reacted to this decision strongly and Supreme Court judges said that they were pained to hear that some people were trying to give religious and communal colour to their order. Against this background the RSS has come out with a suggestion of a ‘balanced view’.
Clarifying RSS stand Bhayyaji Joshi said “Not all firecrackers cause pollution…tomorrow someone might object to lighting diyas on Diwali”. Will we have to discuss that too?”
When asked about the issue of Rohingya refugees, where Supreme Court has said that a balance between national security and human rights should be there, Joshi said, India will have to see why Rohingya were being driven out of Myanmar.
He said that we need to think why no other country adjacent to Myanmar border allowed Rohingya Muslims in their country. Why these Rohingyas selected Jammu and Hyderabad for settling in India? Looking at the behaviour of these immigrants it is hard to infer that they had come seeking refuge in India, he added.
“It appears that they have come to India not to take shelter but as part of a conspiracy and they are trying to settle down here…Unless the background of such elements is checked they can pose a grave security threat to the country”, he added.
He said that Myanmar had expelled them because these Rohingyas were creating security problem in their country. No one, not even China and Indonesia or Bangladesh gave them shelter for the same reason, he added.
He suggested to having a definite policy regarding refugees, how long they can stay and after a certain time limit they should be sent back to their country. He said that India has always welcomed the refugees in the past but it is important to know the background of those who seek refuge in our country. There is a limit to see everything from the humanitarian angle and it is also necessary to know the background of those supporting these Rohingya Muslims, he added further.
When asked about allegations of RSS interference in government functioning, he said that there are people in the BJP who share ideological similarities but this can’t be dubbed as meddling in government’s affairs.
On caste-based reservation, he reiterated Sangh’s old stance, saying that it’s up to those who avail benefits of reservation to decide how long they require reservation. He said he agrees with Babasaheb Ambedkar’s views that every downtrodden section should be extended benefits of reservation, but the benefits should exist only as long as society needs them.
Joshi said a condolence note was mentioned on Gauri Lankesh, a senior journalist who was shot dead near her house in Bengaluru last month. In 2015, when rationalist M M Kalburgi was killed in a similar manner, RSS had condoled his death.
On preparations for Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Joshi said that such big projects require long-term planning. He said that organisations have been working on it from 1991-92, barring some disruption in between. “It’s up to the government to clear hurdles in the way of construction of Ram temple and organisations like Vishwa Hindu Parishad are also of the same view.”