Shillong, June 6: A member of the United Sikhs Organisation, a United Nations affiliated body, has said relocating the residents of Punjabi Lane is not the right solution and there should be an alternative.
Mohinderjit Singh, who represented the organisation, led a five-member delegation from Punjab to meet Home Minister James Sangma on Tuesday.
Singh mooted more rounds of talks between the high-level tribal chiefs and leaders from the Sikh community to find an amicable solution to the contentious issue.
Speaking to reporters after meeting the home minister to discuss on the safety and security of residents of Punjabi Lane, Singh said, “We can sit and discuss over the table. The home minister is ready for this in which a high-level discussion with the tribal chiefs will be organised where the whole issue can be sorted peacefully.”
Giving a new twist to the issue, the Sikh delegation also requested Sangma to give them permission to construct a multi-storeyed building with all modern amenities for health and hygiene.
“One issue that the local people pointed to is the unhygienic condition of the place. The Sikh community all around the world will support the local Sikhs here so that we make beautiful buildings here. The question of unhygienic conditions will therefore be resolved,” Singh said.
Asked to comment on reports that tribal people do not feel safe while walking from Punjabi Lane, Singh said, “I have come across this question for the first time from your end. So if there is any issue raised by the locals from our side, we can sit across the table and resolve that.”
He added that this was the reason why he wanted the tribal chiefs to chalk out the list of things that needed to be resolved.
On the question of shifting of the residents, Singh maintained that Sikhs have never been asked to move even from Afghanistan and Pakistan and Sikhs have been staying there for hundreds of years.
“Even in the worst parts of the world, Iran and Iraq, they have never been asked to leave that place so why Shillong? Are Sikhs so bad? Never,” he said.
Source Shillong Times
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