Days after Muzaffarnagar riots, the government has convened a meeting of the National Integration Council (NIC) in New Delhi on September 23 to discuss how to combat communalism.

The 148-member NIC, headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, will discuss threadbare the growing menace of communalism, casteism and regionalism and how to deal with them.

Union Ministers, Leaders of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, Chief Ministers of all states and Union Territories are members of the NIC.

Leaders of national and regional political parties, chairpersons of national commissions, eminent journalists, public figures and representatives of business and womens organisations are also part of NIC.

The NIC declared its objectives as unity in diversity, freedom of religions, secularism, equality, justice-social, economic and political, and fraternity among all communities, an official release said.

The NIC notes with concern the increase in incidents of communal violence in different parts of the country over the last few years.

The Council emphasises that notwithstanding sporadic communal and other divisive conflicts, the vast majority of common men and women, irrespective of their religious affiliations, live in peace and harmony and have no interest in violence and disorders, the release said.