Uttarakhand govt following 'divide and rule' policy: CPI(M) General Secretary

New Delhi, Jan 6 (PTI) Communist Party of India (Marxist) General Secretary MA Baby on Tuesday accused the BJP-led Uttarakhand government of following the 'divide and rule' policy by considering a ban on entry of non-Hindus on 'ghats' in Haridwar.

CPI(M) reaction comes amid media reports claiming that the Uttarakhand government will hold discussions over declaring Ganga ghats in Haridwar a restricted zone for non-Hindus before the Ardh Kumbh in 2027.

The CPI(M) General Secretary shared a report on X, and accused the state government of trying to whip up communal tension.

The Uttarakhand government, he said, should desist from any move to restrict freedoms enshrined in Articles 19 and 21 of the Constitution.

"The BJP government in Uttarakhand is sparing no effort to whip up communal tensions at a time when it is beset by controversies. The fig leaf of 'preserving sanctity' is a thinly veiled attempt to facilitate the harassment and intimidation of religious minorities. What is actually being followed is the 'Divide and Rule' policy of the British," Baby said.

"Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami should immediately desist from any move to restrict, in any city, the freedoms enshrined in Articles 19 and 21 of the Constitution. Indian cities belong to all Indians and not to any one section alone," he said.

On January 4, Shri Ganga Sabha, the organisation that manages and maintains Har Ki Pauri and the surrounding Ganga ghats in Haridwar, demanded that the Uttarakhand government declare the Kumbh Mela area a restricted zone for non-Hindus before the Ardh Kumbh in 2027. PTI AO NB NB