No need for Bharat Bandh, SC/ST Act being restored: LJP

New Delhi : The Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) on Friday said the proposed bandh on August 9 should be called off as the government has decided to restore the SC/ST Act to its original form. LJP termed its earlier demand for removal of NGT Chairman A.K. Goel "a non-issue".

The LJP had earlier said the party-affiliated Dalit Sena would participate in the "Bharat bandh", called by several Dalit organisations for August 9 to press for restoration of the SC/ST Act.

"The government has brought the bill to restore the SC/ST Act. So, we do not find any reason for a bandh on August 9," LJP Parliamentary Board Chairman and MP Chirag Paswan told reporters here.

Chirag Paswan, who is son of Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, also said that now his party would not pursue the demand of Justice Goel's removal as its concern was the order passed by him as Supreme Court judge, which had "weakened" the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.

"We do not have anything personal against him (Goel). We were against the order passed by him. Now that the government has made the order ineffective, the matter is over," he said.

The Jamui MP said there were angry and negative sentiments among the SCs and STs after the Supreme Court on March 20 put a safeguard against the arrest of those committing an offence under the SCs/STs (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

"With the amendment bill, the government has fulfilled all promises it had made," he said.

Chirag Paswan also thanked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Central government for giving constitutional status to the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC).