New Delhi: The Rajya Sabha adjourned its Question Hour while the Lok Sabha was in uproar. The reason: the Northeast exodus from Bangalore, Pune, Mumbai and Hyderabad. While an adjournment motion was passed in Lok Sabha over the issue, it was disallowed, following which BJP leader Sushma Swaraj took the centrestage, exhorting the parties to forget their differences and come together on this issue.
"Lakhs of people are leaving their homes and leaving for their native places. The matter raises many concerns. The government should take it seriously and not indulge in petty politics. The time has come for the government to take concrete steps to ensure confidence among people from the Northeast," the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said.
She further called for tight security arrangements at different places to curb panic. "They (the people from the Northeast) need to know that the country is with them. This is their country," she said.
Speaking in the Rajya Sabha, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that Assam riots could not and should not be used as an excuse to stoke violence elsewhere in the country. Congratulating the Opposition for a "restrained" attack on the Centre over the issue, he said that the House stood united on the issue.
"Whatever may have happened in Kokrajhar and other areas should not be used to create an environment in other parts of the country that makes the people from the Northeast feel unsafe," he said, adding, "We have to create an atmosphere to bring rumour mongering to end. Those spreading rumours should be brought to book. Our children from the Northeast should feel secure. This country belongs as much to them as to any one of us."
Ahead of the Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley spoke. He said, "The fear amongst the Northeast people is a challenge that all of us has to face. They have the best of people in the country. They work across sectors across the country. Their presence, in fact, promotes national integrity. Therefore, all parties, states and the Centre should speak in one language on the issue."
The situation in Bangalore continues to remain tense as rumours continue to scare people from the Northeast despite appeals by the state and central government to not panic. Three more trains left for Guwahati on Thursday, packed with professionals and students from the Northeast who were heading home.
Throughout the day on Thursday, Karnataka Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar, Karnataka Home Minister R Ashok, Karnataka DGP Lalrokhuma Pachuau and Bangalore Police Commissioner BGJyothiprakash Mirji promised and assured that the people from the Northeast would be protected and that there was nothing to worry.
However, the assurances did not seem to be working. More and more people have been leaving Bangalore. State officials claim that around 20,000 people from the Northeast have already left Bangalore, fearing a backlash over the Assam violence.
What is interesting though is that the source of the rumours - which is being probed by the IB and the state police - is yet to be ascertained.
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