Digi Dhan Mela deferred in Meghalaya

By Our Reporter

SHILLONG, APR 13: The proposed Digi Dhan Mela scheduled for Good Friday tomorrow has been deferred by the NITI Aayog in at least three states of the Northeast, including Meghalaya.

In a statement sent by the state government, it was stated that, “On the intervention of the State Government, NITI Aayog has decided that on account of Good Friday, organizing of Digi Dhan Melas will not be held on the 14th April, 2017 for the State of Meghalaya, Nagaland and Mizoram. The Melas may be organized on any other date convenient to the State Government.”

Today, the United Democratic Party (UDP) has sought the intervention of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure celebration of the Digital India Day should be fixed on a date which does not coincide with any important auspicious days of various faiths.

In a letter to the Prime Minister, UDP chief Donkupar Roy said that the Digital India Day is a welcome step for the country as a whole and I hereby convey my very best wishes to its celebration.

He however said that April 14, the date of Digital India Day this year, also falls on Good Friday, the Hallowed and propitious day of us belonging to the Christian faith.

“In my humble opinion, I would request that such an important celebration should be fixed on a date that does not coincide with any important auspicious days of the various faiths that blesses our great country,” Roy said.

“Therefore, in the best of traditions of our great nation where the secular character is maintained both in letter and spirit, I humbly request your kind intervention to ensure that no Indian citizen is left out from such an important celebration,” he added.

Meanwhile, the Meghalaya Peoples Human Rights Council (MPHRC) has strongly criticised the controversial move by the Government of India (GOI) to hold Digital India Day observances on Good Friday.

“Holding programmes to promote Digital India Day is good, but such a celebration should be avoided on Good Friday. It is an unwanted ruckus,” said Dino D.G. Dympep, Chairman MPHRC.

“There might be a strategy behind it and observing Digital India Day on Good Friday is an attempt to undermine the Christian celebration in a nation where Christians account for 2.3 percent of India’s 1.26 billion people, four-fifths of whom are Hindu” said Dino D. G. Dympep.

While endorsing the stand taken by the State Government in Meghalaya, “the Centre has fail to demonstrate their commitment to ensure the full enjoyment of their rights to non-discrimination and equality in all aspects of society which is also a clear  suppression to the Christian religious minorities, their culture and icons at different levels” said MPHRC

“The negative portrayal of Good Friday as a National Digital Day in the official or political discourse has a significant influence on how they may be perceived by the population in general, where such discourse amounts to incitement of religious hatred and its total disregard to respect the human rights of persons belonging to religious minorities” said MPHRC.