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Key aide of Sidhu booked in hate speech case ahead of Punjab elections
Punjab’s former director general of police, Mohammad Mustafa, who is a principal strategic adviser to state Congress unit chief Navjot Singh Sidhu, has been booked for allegedly making “communal remarks” at a public meeting in Malerkotla, triggering a political slugfest in the election-bound state.
Punjab’s former director general of police, Mohammad Mustafa, who is a principal strategic adviser to state Congress unit chief Navjot Singh Sidhu, has been booked for allegedly making “communal remarks” at a public meeting in Malerkotla, triggering a political slugfest in the poll-bound state.
However, Mustafa, the husband of Punjab cabinet minister Razia Sultana who is the Congress candidate from Malerkotla, has denied the charge. A video of Mustafa making the purported remarks was shared by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders Sambit Patra and Shazia Ilmi on their Twitter handles on Saturday.
Malerkotla senior superintendent of police (SSP) Ravjot Kaur Grewal said: “The police registered a case for provocative speech on Saturday night. We have also sent a report to the Election Commission on Sunday morning.”
The FIR has been lodged on the complaint of a police officer in Malerkotla, said an official.
The purported video clip was played by the BJP at a press conference on Saturday. “I swear by Allah that I will not allow them (AAP) to hold any event. I am a ‘kaumi fauji (soldier of community)’. I am not an RSS agent who will hide in the house out of fear. If they (AAP) again try to do such a thing, I swear by Allah I will thrash them in their homes,” the video purportedly showed him saying at the meeting held on January 20.
Mustafa said he used the word “fitno” (mischief makers) for AAP workers belonging to the Muslim community and there was no question of warning Hindus. “There was no Hindu-Muslim context to what happened in Malerkotla to which the quoted video clip relates. It was a verbal outburst unilaterally mischievously provoked by Jhaduwalas, all Muslims,” Mustafa said in a tweet.
In another tweet, he hit out at the BJP, saying his “nationalist” credentials were superior than those accusing him. “Your intended branding will not work on Mustafa, as my nationalistic credentials are far superior to yours with a history of life long fight against enemies of India and destroyers of communal harmony in the state,” he wrote.
AAP leader Raghav Chadha slammed Mustafa for his remarks and alleged that the Congress was trying to disturb the atmosphere in the state ahead of the state assembly polls
BJP general secretary Tarun Chugh also took strong exception to Mustafa’s remarks and demanded that party leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi clear their stand on the matter.Chugh accused Mustafa of trying to foment communal hatred in Punjab.
