Ahmedabad, Mar 26: The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), Gujarat Congress and NCP have called for a Gujarat bandh today to protest the killing of senior BJP leader and former State Home Minister Haren Pandya. The VHP has called for the bandh, terming Pandya's killing as an act of "terrorism" by "jehadi forces" that are continuously attempting to cause communal disturbance in the state, Gujarat unit general secretary Dilip Trivedi said in a statement last night.
Trivedi said the brutal assaults on Neeraj Jain, a VHP leader in Vadodara, state unit general secretary Dr Jaideep Patel and Jagdish Tiwari, a VHP leader from the city, bear testimony to the "nefarious intentions that jehadi forces intend to disrupt peace in the state." However, the VHP said students appearing for examinations, schools, colleges and transportation in the state would not be affected because of board exams.
Earlier, state congress also called for a bandh to protest the brutal murder of the BJP leader.
"The incident is a blot on Gujarat and those involved in the brutal act must be subject to stringent punishment," a party release said. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has also supported the bandh call.
Bureau Report