BJP to claim credit for Dalit pilgrim sites' restoration
Tarannum Manjul Posted online: Tue Dec 21 2010, 05:46 hrs
Lucknow : In a bid to woo Dalit voters in the state, the Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) has planned to publicise the work it has done for
restoration of 'pilgrim centres for Dalits'.
The party's SC/ST cell will organise extensive campaigns and
programmes across the state to tell people the places connected to
Dalit icon Dr BR Ambedkar were restored by the BJP. The move, say the
party leaders, will help it connect with Dalits in a major way in the
state.
During a day-long chintan baithak held in the state capital on Monday,
both state and national-level leaders of the cell discussed the
strategy aimed to pull voters towards BJP ahead of the 2012 elections.
The Dalit pilgrim centres associated with Dr Ambedkar include his
birthplace, the city where he embraced Buddhism, his deathplace at
Delhi and the place in Mumbai where he was cremated.
The BJP leaders who participated in the meeting included national
general secretary Thawarchand Gehlot, national secretary Ashok
Pradhan, national spokesperson Ramnath Kovind, MP from Bikaner
(Rajasthan) Arjun Ram Meghwal, national president of the SC/ST cell
Dushyant Gautam, national general secretary of the cell Diwakar Seth
besides BJP UP president Surya Pratap Shahi.
"The Congress and the BSP make false claims of being Dalit saviour. It
was the BJP and its various governments which have not just framed
Dalit-friendly policies, but also restored and beautified all the
important places connected to Dr Ambedkar," said Seth.
"For Dalits, these are their char dhams. The first place is Dr
Ambedkar's birthplace at Mhow in Madhya Pradesh, the second is in
Nagpur where he embraced Buddhism, the third is his residence at 26
Alipur Road in Delhi and the fourth is at Chaupati in Mumbai where he
was cremated. Our governments, both at the Centre and in these states,
have restored these places. But now, there is no support from the
Union government for their upkeep," said Seth.
He further said they will make it known that there is no budget for
the upkeep of Dr Ambedkar's residence in Delhi which was declared as a
national monument by the NDA government under the prime ministership
of Atal Bihari Vajpayee. "Our SC MPs have gave a memorandum to the
Prime Minister on December 6 to declare and maintain the place as a
national monument like the Rajghat," said Seth.
Moreover, January onwards, the SC cell of the party will hold
block-level public meetings and district-level conventions to create
awareness on the issue in 50 reserved assembly constituencies. This
will culminate into a state-level convention at Lucknow in April. The
party will also hold a training camp for the cell members of zonal and
district levels at Jhinjholi in Sonipat in Haryana.
"We will also collect information about atrocities on Dalits and fight
for their rights at all levels," said Seth.
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