'Now, who should be ashamed?' UP MP's ‘double standard’ swipe at Yogi over Taliban minister's visit to UP

The MP said that UP govt had earlier filed an FIR against his party leader for remarks “supporting the Taliban”, but will now provide their minister security.

Samajwadi Party MP from Sambhal, Zia Ur Rehman Barq, on Saturday took a swipe at the Yogi Adityanath-led government over Afghanistan's Taliban regime's foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi visiting Uttar Pradesh.

Samajwadi Party MP from Sambhal Zia Ur Rehman Barq.(@barq_zia/X)

In a post on Facebook, Rehman said that Adityanath's government had earlier filed an FIR against his party leader Shafiqur Rahman Barq for remarks “supporting the Taliban”, but will now provide their minister full security.

"When the Government of India itself invites and welcomes Taliban minister Muttaqi to India, no one raises any questions. But when Sambhal MP Dr Shafiqur Rahman Barq made a statement about the Taliban, Yogi Adityanath said he (Barq) should be ashamed, and the UP police filed an FIR," he wrote.

"Now, the same Taliban minister will visit the Taj Mahal in Agra and Deoband, and the Yogi government will provide him with full security. Why the double standards?? Now, who should be ashamed, and against whom will a report be filed?" he added.

Muttaqi, who landed in New Delhi on Thursday, is on a six-day trip to India.

He is the first senior Taliban functionary to travel to India after the return of the group to power following the withdrawal of the United States in 2021.

During his visit to Uttar Pradesh, Muttaqi visited the Darul Uloom Deoband Islamic seminary in Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur district on Saturday. On Sunday, the Afghan foreign minister will travel to Agra to visit the Taj Mahal.

Barq's remarks on Taliban and the controversy

In August 2021, the then Sambhal MP Shafiqur Rehman Barq, who has since passed away, sparked controversy with his comments on the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan, comparing it to India's fight for independence.

The Samajwadi Party leader, also the grandfather of Zia Ur Rehman, had called the Taliban a force that did not allow Russia or the US to establish themselves in Afghanistan.

He was booked for sedition following a complaint from BJP leader Rajesh Singhal. The then MP also faced charges of promoting enmity between different groups, and acts intended to outrage religious feelings. He died in February 2024.

Barq's remarks at time had drawn sharp criticism from Yogi Adityanath also. "He was shamelessly supporting the Taliban. It means supporting their barbaric act. We are a parliamentary democracy. Where are we heading? We are supporting people who are a blot on humanity," the CM had then said.