'Chowkidar, dukandar have a setting': Owaisi's jab at PM Modi, Rahul Gandhi

Asaduddin Owaisi alleged both the BJP and the Congress display double standards when it comes to protecting the rights of the minorities.

All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) MP Asaduddin Owaisi slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, calling them ‘chowkidar’ and 'dukandar,' who are deceiving the common people. Owaisi's remarks came during the Aaj Tak G20 summit.

AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi addresses a public meeting, at Ramleela Ground in Jaipur. (PTI file)

At the event, he criticised both of them and said, “Be it dukandar or chowkidar, they both go silent when crimes against Muslims and Christians are committed. When (Union home minister) Amit Shah brought the draconian UAPA (Unlawful Activities Prevention Act) amendment act in 2019, the Congress party supported it…"

Owaisi pointed out the Congress party's “hypocrisy” and said, “They talk of mohabbat ki dukan but their ex-chief minister Kamal Nath says India is already a Hindu Rashtra.”

The AIMIM chief further alleged that both ‘dukandar’ and ‘chowkidar’ have a "setting" with each other in the game of politics. The two terms refer to PM Modi's label for himself as 'chowkidar' (watchman), implying that he would not allow any corruption in the country; while Gandhi's ‘Mohabbat ki Dukan’ made headlines as part of the Congress' Bharat Jodo Yatra campaign that aimed at fighting politics of “fear, bigotry, and prejudice".

When asked about his prediction for the 2024 Lok Sabha election and whether his party will align with either side, Owaisi said he would not. “…I will keep fighting, but the public needs to realise whether they have a third option.” He stressed there was an urgent need to look for a third option in politics other than Modi and Gandhi, as they display “double standards.”

Owaisi further said that Dalits, Muslims, and tribals are the most vulnerable groups in the country.

On the recent no-confidence motion debate, Owaisi called PM Modi's speech an “old record” and said there was nothing new. He even claimed that he saw the Bharatiya Janata Party MPs sleeping during Modi's over two-hour speech on the final day of the debate on August 10.

Owaisi's remarks reflect his party's strong position to fight the upcoming general elections alone. This comes when 26 non-BJP parties have joined hands to form I.N.D.I.A or the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance in a bid to take down the Modi-led BJP government in the Lok Sabha elections next year.