'No More Taimurs, Baburs': Karni Sena Chief's New Hate Speech on Love Jihad
"Till when will we tolerate religious conversion and love jihad with closed eyes?" Suraj Pal Amu said in a tweet.
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Haryana BJP spokesperson and Karni Sena Chief Suraj Pal Amu, who had earlier stoked controversy by allegedly endorsing communal lynchings in a mahapanchayat in Haryana's Indri, has delivered another controversial speech, this time at a congregation in Pataudi.
In a gathering, which had been called to discuss the matter of religious conversion, 'love jihad', and population control, Amu clearly asserted his opposition to inter-faith marriages.
Amu also targetted late cricketer Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi and his son and actor Saif Ali Khan for indulging in inter-religious marriages.
This is Amu's second controversial speech with communal overtones that has gone viral in a little over a month.
'Remove Them From This Country'
Addressing a mahapanchayat in Haryana's Pataudi on Sunday, 4 July, Amu said: "If India is our mother, then we are the father of Pakistan, and we will not give houses here on rent to them. Remove them from this country, pass this proposal."
“During 1947, the country was divided, we saw the bodies of 10 lakh people. There is no tally of those bodies till today. And we are giving them houses and shops. It has been found in Pataudi that their parks are being built. Uproot the stone of the park. Which one of the youngsters are ready to uproot the stone?” the BJP leader said, as per an Indian Express report.
He further suggested that it was better to die than to bow down to the 'enemy', and that such a death would be as noble as that of the revolutionary Bhagat Singh's.
Amu further said that the country must not be allowed to "turn into Pakistan".
Amu Targets the Pataudi Family
Alluding to the marriage of actress Kareena Kapoor and actor Saif Ali Khan, who is a descendant of the royal family of Pataudi where the mahapanchayat was held, Amu chastised the local people gathered in the assembly for permitting inter-religious marriage.
"This love jihad has been happening from the time of Sharmila Tagore, the seed was sown in Pataudi itself. People of Pataudi, only you will cut it. Stop welcoming them," he said, as quoted by IE.
Further, sharing a photo of the mahapanchayat on Twitter, Amu appealed to the prime minister's office, home minister's office, the RSS, and BJP to take note of the issue of inter-faith marriage.
"They say Hindus are tolerant, they endure everything. We say, there is a limit to tolerance as well. Till when will we tolerate religious conversion and love jihad with closed eyes?" he tweeted.
'Terrifying': Twitterati React to Amu's Speech
Several Twitterati have voiced their concerns over Amu's hate speech.
When questioned about Amu’s remarks, a top BJP leader from Haryana told The Indian Express that his comments are "personal" and that the party has nothing to do with it.
Amu's History With Hate Speech
In a video that had gone viral on social media in June, Amu in a mahapanchayat in Haryana's Indri district was heard making a speech before a large assembly of people in Haryana, marking his endorsement of the lynching of a local Muslim man that had taken place earlier.
Amu's speech had stoked controversy in which he said: “Our boys are not guilty. They (Muslims) distort the pictures of our sisters and daughters. Should we not even murder them?”
"We will pound them. Whoever has the courage can try to stop us," he added.
Before beginning his speech, Amu could be seen asking “true and good Hindus” to raise their hands. After a show of hands from the crowd, he then enquired “if there was any child of Pakistan there, he should also raise his hand”. He further said, “Muslims are no one’s brothers. They’re all butchers.”
Amu, who posted the video on his Facebook page on 31 May, captioned it: “Thousands came for the Hindu Mahapanchayat at Indri (Nuh) today. One who submits to a crime is a greater criminal than the one who commits it. If anyone insults our Hindu religion, will you keep silent? Only true Indians comment. (sic)”
BJP leader Amu at the mahapanchayat in Haryana's Indri district in May.
(Photo: Suraj Pal Amu/Facebook)
The video of the speech was later deleted by Amu from his Facebook page.
Amu was one of the political figures at the forefront of the movement against Sanjay Leela Bhansali's film Padmaavat while his outfit had announced a bounty on the head of actor Deepika Padukone for essaying the role of Rajput queen Rani Padmaavati.
(With inputs from The Indian Express)
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