Clean Ganga: Muslim outfit to spread awareness

New Delhi: At a time when the Centre is seeking public participation for its clean Ganga campaign, an RSS-linked Muslim outfit has decided to spread awareness about it amongst community members on checking pollution of the river.

150 members of the Muslim Rashtriya Manch (MRM), at a meeting held in Varanasi recently, took a vow for a Swachh Ganga and Swachh Bharat. "We decided that we must work towards stopping pollution of Ganga," MRM national convener Mohammad Afzal said.

As part of their efforts, MRM workers will reach out to community members and erect hoardings urging against polluting the river, Afzal said. "It is the government which will clean the river. But to ensure the river remains clean in a sustainable manner, public participation is required. Therefore, our people will put up banners in areas through which the river flows. We will also see that measures taken by Centre are followed," he said.

The 2,525-km river flows through Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal. During the meeting held between January 20 and 21, the Manch also appealed members of Hindu and Muslim communities to "sit together" to find out a solution to the vexed Ayodhya's Ram temple construction issue. "(Mughal emperor) Babur was a foreign invader.

Lord Ram is ours and we are his. Hence, members of both Hindu and Muslim communities should sit together and find out a solution to this (temple issue)," Afzal said. The MRM also held a 'milk party' during the Varanasi meeting to send out a message that its consumption is "healthy", while that of beef was "unhealthy".