MIM leader in trouble over remarks on Mahatma Gandhi
HYDERABAD: A local BJP leader on Friday filed a police complaint against Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen (MIM) legislator Syed Ahmed Pasha Quadri's for his remarks about Mahatma Gandhi's statue inside the state assembly.
"The Nizams built the state assembly building in Hyderabad, but see what has happened. They have installed a statue of Mahatma Gandhi there. Who constructed it and who has been installed there," Quadri, who represents Charminar in the assembly, told a gathering in Karimanagar district's Jagityal town on Thursday.
He said "we" have built all significant structures in India. "What have you done?" he asked. "We constructed Red Fort, Taj Mahal, Qutub Minar, Mecca Masjid and Charminar. What have you constructed in Hindustan?"
Qaudri accused the state government of targeting MIM and framing his fellow party legislator, Akbaruddin Owaisi, jailed for alleged hate speeches.
A few right-wing organizations protested Quadri's speech as BJP's Jagityal unit president Raju lodged the complaint and submitted a CD of his speech as it went viral on Facebook and YouTube. "We received a complaint and are seeking legal opinion about it," ASP B Rajeshwari told TOI.
Sources said police were collecting information about the MLA's speech from the district's Special Branch and would take a decision on registering a case against Quadri accordingly.
Analysts said Quadri's speech was planned and designed to revive memories of Nizam's rule and the old Hyderabad state that is bound strike a chord with the region's Muslims. "But his 'us and them' rhetoric is dangerous," an analyst said.
Observers said whether planned or not, it will impact the Telangana statehood issue by infusing a communal angle to the issue. "His speech is likely to anger sections of Hindus and make Telangana formation more difficult. Telangana can be created only when the region's Hindus and Muslims unite for the demand."
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