Gujarat's home minister, Harsh Sanghavi, stated in the Assembly on Wednesday that the Bhupendra Patel-led government has removed 108 mazars as part of a campaign against encroachments that are believed to be part of a conspiracy.
Sanghavi also emphasized that the government is committed to safeguarding temples from any potential harm.
Referring to an earlier speech by a BJP MLA from Ellisbridge, Sanghavi said, “Today, the point mentioned by Amitbhai… He said that a derasar was removed in Jamalpur. Now, Dada’s (Bhupendra Patel) bulldozer is moving around in every nook and corner of the state so that no temple or devsthan can be removed while hatching a conspiracy. Nobody knows where will it (bulldozer) go.”
Sanghavi addressed the Assembly to request approval for the home department's budget allocation.
He questioned the sudden emergence of several mazars within the Uparkot Fort premises in Junagadh, which had been recently redeveloped.
“In Uparkot, it was not known where (and when) all mazars were built. How can it be built suddenly?”
Sanghavi added, “In all, 108 mazars have been demolished (in the state) and the state’s properties have been opened… The encroachment around Somnath has been removed. This bulldozer of Dada can enter a 20-ft wide street and an 80-m wide road.”
The minister also spoke about the criticism regarding the prolongation of Navratri celebrations into the late hours of the night. He expressed regret over the objections to the late-night garba performances, referring to a recent PIL filed in the high court, and defended the cultural traditions that are essential to the state's identity.
“Navratri was allowed (to be celebrated) the whole night so that the people of Gujarat could worship the goddess and play raas throughout the night. Considering the Supreme Court and (Gujarat) high court and its fear, we definitely got the sound (of music) decreased.”
“But because Navratri could be allowed till late night, it brought Diwali to numerous households. To get a figure of that (how many households), one needs to ask the poor, the vendors and those running small restaurants,” he added.
“I made a statement (then) that if the people of my state cannot perform garba then would they do so in Pakistan? The very next day of this statement, people from a party (moved) a PIL in the HC. They have a problem if people of the state perform garba till late in the night. Can’t people perform garba till late? We had to face that situation,” the minister said.
Sanghavi, speaking while seeking the House approval for budgetary allocation for the Home Department, claimed the BJP-ruled Gujarat was the "safest" state and asked the opposition, which cited NCRB data on crimes to attack the government, to check if anyone can move freely at 2 am in other states as is the case here.
"Cyber crimes have become a matter of concern nowadays. Victims of cyber crimes many times feel so helpless that they end their lives. Scamsters not only defraud people financially but also trap our daughters using technology. Under our 'TRISHUL' project, we will set up a new call centre and appoint phone operators so that calls of cyber crime victims do not go unanswered," he said while tabling demand for grants for the department.
