Satyapal Singh Calls Dadri a ‘Small Incident’, Kicks up a Row

Satyapal Singh called the Dadri incident small compared to what happens with minorities in Pakistan.

BJP MP Satyapal Singh. (Courtesy: ANI)

BJP MP Satyapal Singh kicked up a row on Tuesday with his remarks on the Dadri lynching incident. He was responding to a statement by Pakistan’s National Security Advisor Sartaj Aziz.

Singh called the Dadri incident small compared to what happens with minorities in Pakistan.

“As far as a small incident like Dadri is concerned, our country’s democratic atmosphere is fully competent to handle” Singh told CNN-IBN.

This evoked strong reactions from Opposition parties, which said it was a reflection of the party’s “polarisation” strategy.

Politics Over Satyapal Singh’s Comment

I am absolutely dismayed at the remarks of the BJP MP, who was also a former Police Commissioner of Mumbai. Such remarks reflect the “strategy” of BJP to “usurp” power by “polarising” communities.
— Ajoy Kumar, Congress Spokesperson

SP leader Rajiv Rai demanded an apology from the BJP and alleged it was aimed at “communal polarisation”, which one would see more of as the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections scheduled for 2017 comes closer.

They should apologise. I am disgusted that this statement comes from an MP, who was a former police commissioner.
— Rajiv Rai, SP Leader

50-year-old Mohammed Akhlaq was dragged out of his home by a mob and beaten to death after a public announcement from the local temple that the family had slaughtered a calf and eaten its meat in Uttar Pradesh’s Bisahara village in Dadri.

The Uttar Pradesh government has submitted a report to the Centre on the issue. The incident has triggered a nationwide outrage with a number of eminent authors deciding to return their awards.