City orgs protest over J&K tragedy, slam Centre over ‘lapse in security'
Guwahati:
Civil society organisations
in Guwahati gathered on Thursday to protest against the
Pahalgam attack
, terming it as a 'massacre', besides criticising the govt for their alleged intelligence failure and
security lapse
.
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The protest meet was organised by four civic bodies: the Coordination Committee Against Citizenship Amendment Act, Assam Civil Society, Axom Nagarik Samaj and Sustha Samaj Bikash Chakra. Activist Paresh Malakar led the meeting, which began after an observance of two-minute silence in honour of the victims.
The demonstration, which took place near Dighalipukhuri, saw participation from prominent citizens, including renowned intellectual Hiren Gohain, who characterised the situation as a crucial moment for the nation, while denouncing the terrorist act.
He called for strict punishment of the culprits, while cautioning against targeting specific communities in the country on pretext of the attack.
"This attack by religious fanatics is an act of cowardice amidst the daily struggle of the commoners. Now, we must be vigilant so that certain anti-social elements cannot target any particular community on pretext of the Pahalgam incident," Gohain said. He expressed bewilderment at the attack occurring in a region which has a substantial presence of defence personnel.
Former NEHU political science professor, Apurba Kumar Baruah, initiated the meeting by denouncing the Pahalgam incident as a massacre and criticising the govt's alleged security failures. He urged the administration to ensure public safety and strengthen border security.
Academic Indrani Dutta addressed growing religious divisions and security shortcomings in India, advocating solidarity with the Kashmiris.
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Rajya Sabha MP Ajit Kumar Bhuyan also demanded a fair investigation into such incidents' root causes, while praising the resilience of the Kashmiri people.
Senior advocate Hafiz Rashid Ahmed Choudhury emphasised that eliminating terrorists alone wouldn't resolve terrorism, stressing the need to address fundamental causes. He opposed religious mobilisation calls and advocated Hindu-Muslim unity against such plots.
In Nagaon, senior AICC spokesperson, Charan Singh Sapra, said, "If Himanta Biswa Sarma wants to accuse Congress of Pakistan links, he must first answer for his own party's failures — including the intelligence lapses behind the Pahalgam attack."
"If anyone has affection for Pakistan, it is BJP leaders. LK Advani once visited Jinnah's tomb in Pakistan and called him a secular man. When Narendra Modi became PM, he visited Nawaz Sharif's house.
After the Pathankot attack, BJP govt rolled out the red carpet for Pakistan's ISI. During the Kandahar hijacking, then-minister Jaswant Singh escorted terrorists," he alleged.
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