Senior VHP leader Praveen Togadia was on Thursday barred from speaking in at least two public meetings by the Assam police saying that his speech might affect “public peace and disturb the public order in Guwahati and other areas in a serious manner”.
Togadia arrived in Guwahati from Silchar on Thursday and he was supposed to speak at least two public meetings, one each at Guwahati and in Nalbari town. However, on his arrival at the lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International (lGBI) airport, he was handed over a letter by the officials of the Guwahati City police Commissionerate informing that he would not be allowed to speak.
“Whereas it has been brought to my notice that various inflammatory speeches have been made by Praveen Togadia at various places and the said person is visiting the State of Assam and is likely to arrive in Guwahati on February 12.
And whereas it has also been reported that such inflammatory speeches hurt the sentiments of religious minority communities and create a deep sense of insecurity among them, which is very likely to disturb public peace and order,” said the letter of the City police Commissionerate.
The letter further mentioned about reports that Togadia on Thursday made a speech in a meeting at Patharkandi in Karimganj district, where he has asked religious minority groups to convert to Hinduism.
“Now, therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred upon me under Section 144 of the criminal procedure 1973, I do hereby direct Praveen Togadia to abstain from attending the meeting, making any speech therein or making an inflammatory speech through any media in any part of Guwahati Police Commissionerate,” it said.
VHP leaders here termed it a conspiracy by the State Government and said that they had obtained prior permission from the civil administration for organising the meeting to be addressed by Togadia.
“It is a conspiracy by the Government. The Assam Government does not want Togadia to speak here and so they barred him from speaking at the meetings on Thursday. However, people of Assam know these gimmicks by the Congress-led Government,” said Guwahati lok Sabha MP and senior BJP leader Bijoya Chakraborty.
Interestingly, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, however, said that the Government has not imposed any ban on Togadia. “We want him to speak and that the people should realise how communal he is. He has come to burn Assam,” said Gogoi while speaking to journalists on Thursday.