Amit Shah’s Remarks Seen as Encouraging Those Disrupting Friday Prayers in Gurugram

New Delhi, 01 Nov 2021 [Fik/News Sources]: Amidst the ongoing disruption of weekly Friday prayers in Gurugram by Hindutva elements, Home Minister Amit Shah has made a controversial remark that is being seen as tacit support to the miscreants.

Addressing a rally in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, on Saturday, Shah said that during Congress rule in the state Muslims were permitted to block a national highway and offer Friday congregational prayer.

“When I came to Uttarakhand earlier, during the Congress tenure, my convoy was stuck in a traffic jam and some people told me that there is permission to block a national highway for namaaz on Fridays.”

State Assembly elections are due in Uttarakhand in the next few months.
The Union home minister accused Congress of appeasing Muslims for “vote bank” and ignoring Hindus as he said the Congress government didn’t carry out restoration works at Kedarnath temple in the state.

The video clip of his remarks surfaced on social media and quickly went viral triggering critical and angry reactions from commentators and activists who said that Shah’s claims were baseless and labelleted them as “hate speech” aimed at inciting Hindus.

People said that the speech of the home minister was a message to the right-wing outfits whose followers are disrupting Friday prayers in Gurugram.

“You know who empowers the mob which disrupts Friday prayers at govt-assigned places in Gurugram?” wrote Tariq Anwar, a journalist.

He said that by fanning hatred the government successfully diverts focus from inflation and other issues.

Similarly, Dr Mohammad Reyaz, who teaches at Kolkata’s Aliah University, said that BJP which has been ruling in Uttarakhand for last five years has no achievement to show, hence it’s leaders are using hatred to get votes.

Reacting to Shah’s remarks, another journalist Abhishek Baxi called him a “pathetic man” who “has nothing to talk about apart from pulling his anti-Muslim agenda”.

Tamana Pankaj, a lawyer who is associated with the United Against Hate group called Amit Shah a “communal bigot”.