Summary:
SHILLONG: Following the recent violence in the hill town, where an altercation between locals and Sikhs spiralled into widespread clashes, the All India Christian Council on Thursday expressed its solidarity with the Dalit Sikhs of Shillong and urged Christians everywhere to resolve problems peacefully. The state government has constituted a high-level committee led by deputy chief minister Prestone Tynsong to examine the feasibility of the demand. However, a member of the National Minorities Commission who was visiting Shillong on Wednesday Manjit Singh Rai on Wednesday said the move would be "unfeasible". "Offering to broker peace, the council said it has taken such initiatives in the past and would "work with all parties to bring peace in the region".In the aftermath of the violence, that started on Thursday, several local organizations have reiterated a demand to relocate the Mazhabi Sikhs who live in Punjabi Lane - where the incident was sparked off. "The All India Christian Council urges the Christian community in Meghalaya as well as other communities to find solutions to the problems and issues through peaceful dialogue rather than resorting to violence," a statement issued by Bishop Paothang Haokip, northeast coordinator of the Hyderabad-based All India Christian Council, said on Thursday.Saying that this is all the more important at a time when the country is being "polarized on the basis of caste, religion and tribe", the statement added, "Opponents of the church in India are misusing these incidents for propaganda, as a case of the Christian-majority community attacking the Dalit Sikhs..