Allahabad: In a stinging attack on Narendra Modi, SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav today alleged BJP was trying to hoodwink Muslims by talking of apology after “having allowed their carnage” in 2002 and dismissed as “baseless propaganda” Gujarat Chief Minister's development claims.
Hitting back at Modi for his taunt that Mulayam could not make UP as prosperous as Gujarat as the feat required “a 56-inch-chest”, Mulayam raked the 2002 riots issue at a rally in the city where UP Minister Azam Khan asked Muslims to defeat “the mass murderer who had called you a puppy “, a reference to the remarks made by the BJP prime ministerial candidate in an interview last year.
“I would like to remind him that I had demonstrated my strength when I visited Gujarat in the aftermath of the brutal massacre of Muslims. I went there and met and consoled victims of the horrible communal riots notwithstanding Modi's threat that his administration would not be responsible if I was attacked by mobs,” he said as Modi addressed a parallel rally in Lucknow.
Describing Muslims as “a brave, sensible and trustworthy community”, Yadav charged BJP with “hoodwinking” the minority community by “sounding apologetic after having allowed their carnage” - an obvious reference to the recent statement of BJP chief Rajnath Singh.
