A day after India was ‘shamed’ by a gruesome murder of an innocent man in Greater Noida, the country’s Vice President Hamid Ansari said that it was the State’s responsibility to ensure the right to life for every citizen irrespective of faith or creed.
His comments assume significance particularly in light of the mob lynching of the Greatet Noida man on the outskirts of Delhi over rumours that his family ate beef.
While addressing delegates at Qaumi Ekta Sammelan (National Unity Conference) in Uttar Pradesh, Ansari said, “The State has to ensure the Right to Life, enshrined in the Article 21 of Indian Constitution, to every citizen of India, irrespective of the citizen s faith or creed.”
Ansari made these comments in presence of the state’s governor and former BJP minister, Ram Naik.
He said that the unity among the people was essential for India’s progress and development.
“Kaumi Ekta are two words. Whether its south or north, the entire India is one community and unity is necessary, which had been said by our ancestors since ages. But if there was a need to organise conference on communal harmony, it meant that there was something amiss in unity,” he added.
On Monday, 52-year-old father of an Indian Air Force personnel was beaten to death by a mob on the outskirts of Delhi, allegedly over rumours that he had eaten beef.
Mohammad Ikhlaq and his 22-year-old son were dragged out from their house by around 100 villagers in Dadri in Uttar Pradesh and beaten with bricks. Ikhlaq’s son is critical.
Around 30 minutes before the murder, a Hindu priest had allegedly made an announcement from the nearby temple that a cow had been slaughtered and its carcass had been found near a transformer. Since there are only two families in the area and the other family was not at home, attackers lynched Ikhlaq to death while critically injuring his son.
Reacting to this barbaric act, the controversial Union Culture Minister and the BJP MP from Noida, Mahesh Sharma attempted to belittle the murder by saying that it was just an accident.
UP’s cabinet minister, Azam Khan, criticised the Prime Minister Narendra Modi for not doing enough to reign in his supporters who according ro him carried out these attacks.