Engage in debate, not vandalism, says Arun Jaitley
The finance minister appealed for calm and criticised groups that have been resorting to violence as a form of protest.
![Engage in debate, not vandalism, says Arun Jaitley](https://sirtrevor.scroll.team:7000/media/st-block-10-1445327067220-raw.jpg)
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Tuesday said the trend of people resorting to vandalism to air contrarian views was "extremely disturbing", and insisted that there had to be "a civilised mode” of debating issues. Speaking at a conference in Delhi, Jaitley made a distinction between the Bharatiya Janata Party and its ally Shiv Sena, saying no one from his own party had resorted to violence, though some had been pulled up for making controversial statements.
The Shiv Sena had on Monday vandalised the office of India's cricket board in Mumbai, protesting against talks with Pakistan about resuming sporting ties. Earlier in the month, the Sena had attacked former BJP leader Sudheendra Kulkarni for organising the launch of a book written by former Pakistan foreign minister KM Kasuri.
Criticising these actions, Jaitley said, “All right-thinking sections will have to distance themselves from these kinds of methodologies," while insisting that the freedom to air dissenting views was vital to democracy.