By Our Reporter
SHILLONG: The statement made by Congress legislator Ajit Singh Mofar in the Punjab Assembly seeking to tackle the stray dog menace in the state by sending them to the North-East has evoked sharp criticism from politicos of the city.
Union Minister of State for Water Resources and Minority Affairs Vincent Pala while speaking to media persons here said, “Irresponsible people will always give irresponsible statements. Mofar should not have said like this.”
Meanwhile, the North East Students Organisation (NESO) has decided to lodge a complaint with Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh in this regard. NESO information & publicity secretary, Samuel B Jyrwa, while condemning the statement said, “It’s derogatory and shows the mindset mainland Indian leaders have for people from the North East.”
According to Jyrwa, the legislator does not have any knowledge about the culture of the region.
The State unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) too strongly condemned the remark of the Congress MLA.
The BJP was also astonished at the fact that after such an insulting remark by the Congress MLA, the oldest National Party in India has not taken any disciplinary action against him.
“We can make arrangements to catch such dogs, put them in jungle or zoos. Maybe we can then send them to Nagaland, Mizoram and China where they are more needed,” the Punjab legislator had said in a veiled reference to the practice in some communities in North-Eastern states where dogs are killed for their meat.
The Congress MLA and Urban Affairs Minister Ampareen Lyngdoh also took strong cognizance of the statement.
“It is unfortunate that such statement has come from a man in that position,” she said.
