Ahmedabad: An NGO run by St Xavier's Non-Formal Education Society sparked a major row after it published a job advertisement of sanitation workers stating that the unreserved, general category candidates would be preferred for the post.
According to Times of India report, the controversial notice put up by Human Development and Research Center (HDRC) for the job stated that candidates from general category - Brahmin, Kshatriya, Bania, Patel, Jain, Saiyed, Pathan, Syrian Christian, Parsi - would get first preference for the job of cleaning of fice courtyard, bathroom and toilets.
The job notice invited strong reactions from various social groups. NSUI leader Anil Singh Rajput and other members arrived on campus, demanding to meet HDRC Director Prasad Chacko but was stalled by staff members which provoked the agitators to go on rampage.
While youths from outfits like Rajput Shaurya Foundation (RSF) and Yuva Shakti Sangathan (YSS) vandalized the NGO's premises, breaking window panes and pots over its "tactic to divide society", a Muslim outfit slapped a legal notice asking the agency to tender unconditional apology within seven days.
“It is a deliberate act by Christian missionaries to denigrate the status of Saiyad, considered direct descendants of the Prophet. They have hurt religious sentiment and incited communal hatred," Usman Qureishi, Sunni Awami Forum told Times of India.
Angry outburst forced the NGO to tender an apology, seeking forgiveness from various communities regarding the issue.
“There was and is no intention to hurt sentiments of any religion, community or caste through the advertisement issued by us. We apologise if we have hurt anybody's sentiment. We will ensure this is not repeated in future," said an apology issued by HDRC secretary Jimmy Dabhi.
