NEW DELHI: The Imam of the Jama Masjid, Syed Abdullah Bukhari, appealed to the people to vote for the Janata Dal and other National Front constituents in assembly elections in eight states and the Union Territory of Pondicherry.
“The people of all faiths and religion should strengthen VP Singh’s government at the center by defeating the Congress (I) the Imam told a hurriedly summoned press conference here
“They should remember the misrule perpetrated by the Congress (I) when they were at the center,”” he said.
He said the new government had averted a “big crisis” by deferring by four months the Vishwa Hindu Parishad’s plans to begin construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh state at a disputed land piece. Both the Muslims and Hindus claim the land site housed their place of worship.
Stating that the government was handling various problems, “very efficiently” the Imam welcomed the recent statements by various central leaders, including the home minister, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, regarding solving of the Ram Janambhoomi Babri Masjid controversy keeping the interests of both the communities in mind.
“Hindus and Muslims should live like brothers and not do anything which might create tension,” he said, adding “‘we hope for a better situation to prevail on this issue after the expiry of four months.
On queries regarding the situation in Jammu and Kashmir, the Kashmir youth, listen to their problems and take steps to meet them.”
He said steps like setting up industries and providing opportunities for employment and education could help in resolving the current impasse.
The Imam said that the Congress (I) was entirely responsible for the present situation in Kashmir. “The Rajiv government never bothered to look into the developmental problems of the state,”’ he alleged.
Stating that similar was the case in Punjab, the Imam said, “TI do not at all want our country to be divided, but these problems cannot be solved through bullets.””
Answering a query, he said he was against the appointment of Jagmohan as the state’s governor, “but probably there was no other choice for the prime minister.
ISLAMABAD: The president of Azad Kashmir Sardar Mohammad Abdul Quayum Khan has said the Pakistan government was pursuing its policy on Kashmir on its own without taking, “the leaders of Kashmir” into confidence.
Talking to the newsmen in Lahore, Quayum said “they casually sought some suggestions from me which I submitted sometime back.””
Article extracted from this publication >>
