PANJIM: A group of young leaders under the banner of Bhartiya Sanskruti Raksha Samiti (BSRS) is aiming to dispel the tension in the State between the Muslim and Hindu communities over Shivaji Jayanti (birth anniversary of Shivaji) celebrations.
Speaking to the media, BSRS Vice-President Shailendra Velingkar said they would have a healthy dialogue with both communities to make them aware of Shivaji’s secularism.
“There should be awareness about the work of Shivaji. We will highlight the most important issue of Shivaji which is secularism among the communities,” Velingkar said. He added that Shivaji was not just a king of Hindus but worked and created his regime taking all the communities together.
“We will meet the leaders and youth of Muslims in Valpoi for a fruitful discussion without disturbing the social fabric of the society. We are going to educate the people about the history of Shivaji and what we should take from it,” he said.
Speaking about the Rumdamol-Davorlim Panchayat issue in which a resolution was taken not to display banners of Shivaji on his birth anniversary, Velingkar said the Sarpanch was misguided. “We have demanded to withdraw the resolution which was taken by the Panchayat which the Sarpanch has agreed to,” Velingkar said.
He said that on March 15, Shivji Jayanti would be celebrated in Davorlim by the Muslim and Hindu communities. “We are able to settle the issue in a peaceful manner as many a time misunderstandings happen due to a communication gap which politicians exploit for dividing the community,” Velingkar said.
He opposed the celebration of the birth anniversary of Tipu Sultan stating this was wrong. “We will support to celebrate anniversary of great people like Abdul Kalam and Abdul Hameed, we can and will jointly celebrate birth anniversary of these leader,” Velingkar mentioned.
