File Photo of Vice President Hamid Ansari.
Vice President Hamid Ansari today said the State has to ensure the right to life for every citizen irrespective of faith or creed -- remarks that assume significance in view of the recent killing of a man by a mob near Delhi over rumours that his family ate beef.
"The State has to ensure the Right to Life, enshrined in the Article 21 of Indian Constitution, to every citizen of India, irrespective of the citizen s faith or creed," he said at a Quami Ekta Sammelan meet in the presence of dignitaries including Governor Ram Naik.
Mr Ansari said unity among the people is essential for India's progress and development. A meeting of hearts and minds of the people was essential for India to move ahead.
"Kaumi Ekta are two words. Whether its south or north, the entire India is one community and unity is necessary, which had been said by our ancestors since ages," he said. But if there was a need to organise conference on communal harmony, it meant that there was something amiss in unity, he added.
On Monday, 50-year-old father of an Indian Air Force personnel was beaten to death by a mob on the outskirts of Delhi, allegedly over rumours that he had eaten beef.
Mohammad Ikhlaq and his 22-year-old son were dragged out from their house by around 100 villagers in Dadri in Uttar Pradesh and beaten with bricks. Mr Ikhlaq's son is critical.
Half an hour before the attack, an announcement was allegedly made at a nearby temple that a calf had been slaughtered and its carcass had been found near a transformer. No names were taken, but there were only two Muslim families in the area and the other family was not at home.
Mr Ikhlaq's son Mohammad Sartaj, 24, is an engineer with the Air Force.