Chandigarh: Saying violence in Muslim-dominated Nuh is the result of the failure of the BJP-JJP government in Haryana, former Chief Minister Bhupinder Hooda has sought a judicial probe into the incident under the supervision of the high court.
For him, the instigators and rioters should be punished severely.
“The violence is the result of the failure of the BJP-JJP government. Even BJP leader and Union Minister Rao Inderjit Singh himself has accepted this fact,” Congress veteran and two-time chief minister Hooda told over phone from Delhi.
“The government proved to be a complete failure in understanding the sensitivity and condition of the matter and taking precautionary measures. Even the local police had already given the report to the government. Despite this, appropriate steps were not taken by the government,” the Leader of Opposition said.
Six people, including two home guards and a cleric, have died in the clashes, that erupted in Nuh over an attempt to stop a Vishva Hindu Parishad procession, and spread to Gurugram.
Hooda believes the riots do not benefit any side and innocent people have to bear the consequences.
“Shops of innocent people were burnt, houses were attacked and many lives were lost. Offices, schools and MNCs had to declare a shutdown. It is clear that the BJP-JJP government has proved to be a complete failure in handling law and order. It has no right to remain in power,” he said.
Hooda said the G-20 meeting was held in Gurugram in July itself, in which the issue of crime and security was discussed and it is surprising that Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar makes unfortunate statements regarding the safety of the citizens.
“The Chief Minister says the police cannot provide security to all. Is security only for those in power? Where does the common citizen go for security,” he asked.
“The government should know that it is the job of the government to provide security to every citizen. But due to the attitude of the present government, the people of Haryana today feel most insecure in the country,” Hooda said.
The Leader of the Opposition said he has been the Chief Minister of the state twice and knew the state police is capable of handling every situation, but “it should get the right guidelines from the government”.
“If the government takes the right steps at the right time, such incidents are never possible, but every incident shows that the government seems to be a complete failure,” said Hooda, who was chief minister of Haryana from March 2005 to October 2014 (two terms).
Describing the second tenure of the BJP government in Haryana as more disastrous than its first term, he said Haryana was the country’s leading state in terms of per capita income, per capita investment, employment generation and law and order before 2014.
“Today the state tops in terms of inflation, unemployment and crime. This is also affecting the economy of the state. Gurugram and Faridabad are areas that have companies and industries from all over the world. If the law and order situation breaks down, industries will migrate from there and those wanting to make fresh investments will have to withdraw.”
Hooda said this was the reason why investment in Haryana is continuously decreasing in the past several years and unemployment is increasing.
“Crime and riots are increasing due to unemployment. This government has trapped Haryana in the cycle of crime and riots,” the former Chief Minister added.
Hooda appealed to the people to maintain peace and brotherhood and reminded that there were no riots in Mewat even at the time of Partition.
Responding to a question, he pointed out that the brotherhood in Haryana is famous all over the world, and warned anti-social elements that no matter how hard they try, they will not be able to break the brotherhood.