Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders on Friday came down heavily on AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi for his remarks wherein he threatened the Uttar Pradesh Police and made objectionable comments against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. While Union Minister for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said that the "criminal and communal mindset" of such people will never be accepted in India, party's spokesperson Sambit Patra said 'whenever people like Aurangzeb and Babar will come to commit atrocities in the country, someone like Maharana Pratap, Shivaji, Yogi and Modi will emerge'.
Addressing a rally in Kanpur of poll-bound Uttar Pradesh on December 12, Owaisi had threatened the state's police personnel over alleged atrocities committed by them against the Muslims and warned the police that they won't "enjoy the patronage of UP CM Yogi and PM Modi for a long time".
“I want to remind police officers that they need to know this fact that Yogi and PM Modi will not always be there...We Muslims are definitely compelled according to the times, but remember we are not going to forget your atrocities. We will remember your atrocities. Allah will destroy you with his power. Things will change, then who will come to save you? Yogi will go to his Mutt and Modi to the mountains. Then who will come to save you,” he said.
Condemning Owaisi’s statements, Patra said, "Whenever people like Aurangzeb and Babar step on this land, heroes like Shivaji, Maharana Pratap, and Modi-Yogi will stand against them."
Facing severe criticism from the BJP ranks, Owaisi in a series of tweets clarified that '1 minute video is being circulated' from his 45 min speech to distract people from the "Haridwar Genocidal meet".
"In order to distract from #HaridwarGenocidalMeet, a clipped 1 min video is being circulated from 45 min speech I gave in Kanpur. I’ll set the record straight: 1. I did not incite violence or give threats. I talked about POLICE ATROCITIES Here’s the full video in TWO PARTS," Owaisi wrote in a series of tweets.
Notably, the AIMIM has said that it will contest the upcoming Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. Owaisi is touring the state, addressing rallies to woo the voters, especially the Muslim dominated areas. His party had initially joined the Om Prakash Rajbhar-led 'Bhagidari Sankalp Morcha' but the AIMIM was left in the lurch after Rajbhar's Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party forged a pre-poll alliance with Samajwadi Party.
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