09-22-2012, 11:28 AM
Muslims in kerala trying to destroy Hindu buses and Hindu vehicles
-- BRF
Cops seek neutral names for buses in Kasaragod
M P Prashanth, TNN | Sep 20, 2012, 02.50PM IST
KOZHIKODE: Police plan to ask bus operators in Kasaragod to use religiously neutral names for buses after it was found that buses with Muslim or Hindu names have become a starting point for communal tension in the district.
A senior police officer said it had been noticed that even accidents involving buses having religious names had ignited clashes in the district. "If a bus having a Muslim name hits a Hindu, it can generate tension in the district. The same can happen the other way around. Pelting a stone at a bus with a religious name could trigger violent reaction from the community," he said.
However, the private bus owners association is less enthused by the police move. "A similar suggestion had come from them around three years ago. They wanted us to paint buses in same colours and to have no names for them," said V C Madhusoodhanan, president of the association. "The police even wanted us to remove the religious symbols kept inside buses. We took objection to the directive and moved the high court, which ordered a stay." Bus owners feel that removing religious symbols from buses alone will not help in curbing violence. "The public knows which bus is owned by whom. There is no point in removing the visible signs," Madhusoodhanan said.
-- BRF
Cops seek neutral names for buses in Kasaragod
M P Prashanth, TNN | Sep 20, 2012, 02.50PM IST
KOZHIKODE: Police plan to ask bus operators in Kasaragod to use religiously neutral names for buses after it was found that buses with Muslim or Hindu names have become a starting point for communal tension in the district.
A senior police officer said it had been noticed that even accidents involving buses having religious names had ignited clashes in the district. "If a bus having a Muslim name hits a Hindu, it can generate tension in the district. The same can happen the other way around. Pelting a stone at a bus with a religious name could trigger violent reaction from the community," he said.
However, the private bus owners association is less enthused by the police move. "A similar suggestion had come from them around three years ago. They wanted us to paint buses in same colours and to have no names for them," said V C Madhusoodhanan, president of the association. "The police even wanted us to remove the religious symbols kept inside buses. We took objection to the directive and moved the high court, which ordered a stay." Bus owners feel that removing religious symbols from buses alone will not help in curbing violence. "The public knows which bus is owned by whom. There is no point in removing the visible signs," Madhusoodhanan said.