Abu Azmi suspended from assembly for hailing Aurangzeb  | Mumbai news

MUMBAI: Samajwadi Party MLA Abu Asim Azmi was suspended for the rest of the budget session on Wednesday after his remarks hailing Mughal emperor Aurangzeb triggered a storm in the state legislature. For two days, both houses erupted in protest after Azmi called Aurangzeb a “good administrator” and claimed India had thrived under his rule.

Azmi’s remarks, made on Monday, were met with a sharp backlash from ruling and opposition party leaders. He was suspended from the assembly after a resolution was moved by parliamentary affairs minister Chandrakant Patil. “The statement made by Azmi has created anger in society. It is also an insult to the august house and has tarnished its reputation. Considering this, I am moving a proposal to suspend him till the end of the budget session,” said Patil. “During this period, his entry in the premises of the state legislature will also be barred.”

As soon as the proposal was moved, members demanded that Azmi be suspended for five years. BJP legislator Sudhir Mungatiwar said they would not allow Maratha emperors Chhatrapati Shivaji and Chhatrapati Sambhaji to be insulted. “If not god, both of them are more than gods to us. Azmi should be suspended for five years.”

Patil, however, reminded the lower house of a Supreme Court ruling which mandated that an elected representative cannot be suspended for more than one session of the legislature. Members from the ruling parties then rushed to the well of the house and raised slogans against Azmi. Vijay Wadettiwar, Congress leader from the opposition, supported the resolution, saying they could not support those who spoke against the Maratha king. He, however, asked what action is being taken by the state government against actor Rahul Solapurkar and a certain Prashant Koratkar, who allegedly made comments that disrespected Chhatrapati Shivaji and Chhatrapati Sambhaji.

This led to a further ruckus as both ruling and opposition members shouted slogans again. Amid the chaos, the resolution to suspend Azmi was passed by assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar.

Marathi actor Solapurkar faces outrage for claiming that Chhatrapati Shivaji had escaped from Agra after “bribing” chieftains of the Mughal emperor, while Koratkar has been booked for allegedly threatening historian Indrajit Sawant, known for his research on Maratha history, and making derogatory remarks about Chhatrapati Shivaji.

The legislative council too was rocked by protests as opposition members sat in the well of the house, demanding action against Solapurkar and Koratkar. They also demanded action against Azmi. Leader of the opposition, Ambadas Danve, and Congress leader Bhai Jagtap demanded a debate on the issue, which was turned down by council chairperson Ram Shinde. The house then descended into further chaos.

Danve went on to allege that Koratkar was being “protected”. Responding to him, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said Koratkar had secured a stay and “we will have to approach the higher courts”.

Fadnavis said that NCP (SP) MLA Jitendra Awhad had remarked that Aurangzeb was a “gigantic figure” and Chhatrapati Shivaji was “short and small” and that he said this on record in the legislature. He claimed that opposition was being selectively in its attack.

He also asked the opposition whether they would criticise Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru for what he wrote on Chhatrapati Shivaji in ‘Discovery of India’. “We will never tolerate insults to Shivaji Maharaj. We also condemn Pandit Nehru.”

Fadnavis also attempted to calm legislators, saying, “We will not spare anyone who has spoken against the revered king.”

Meanwhile, after a day of turmoil, Fadnavis and other senior ministers from the BJP-led Mahayuti government ended the evening on a pleasant note, attending a special screening of ‘Chhava’. The recently released movie is based on the life of Chhatrapati Sambhaji, the second ruler of the Maratha Empire.

SP reacts to suspension

Samajwadi Party national president Akhilesh Yadav wrote in a post on social media, “If the basis of suspension starts getting influenced by ideology, then what difference is there between freedom of expression and slavery? Whether it is our MLAs or MPs, their fearless wisdom is unmatched. If some people think that by ‘suspension’ one can rein in the truth, then this is the childishness of their negative thinking. Today’s free-thinking says, ‘we don’t want BJP’!”

Harsh words from Yogi, Yadav replies with poetry

LUCKNOW: Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath said Abu Asim Azmi should be suspended from the Samajwadi Party (SP), without naming him. Speaking in the state legislative council on Wednesday, Adityanath said, “The SP should send him (Abu Azmi) to UP that knows how to deal with such people. We will not take time in treating him.”

He also accused the SP of failing to respect India’s cultural heritage and deviating from the principles of its ideological founder Dr Ram Manohar Lohia. “Lohia would identify Lord Ram, Lord Krisnha and Lord Shiva as the pillars of India’s unity. But today the SP is glorifying a ruler like Aurangzeb.”

Adityanath’s comments have drawn a strong reaction from the SP, with party spokesperson Abdul Hafiz Gandhi saying, “There is always a civilised way to express ones views. The way CM Yogi Adityanath speaks is always the other way. This cannot be the language of a person holding a constitutional post. ‘Ilaaj kara denge…’ is a language that smacks of authoritarianism. It points to extra-constitutional means. In a democracy, this is not allowed.”

SP national president Akhilesh Yadav posted a couplet on social media, also without naming names. Translated from Hindi, it reads, “He who is afraid of losing his chair, loses his self-control, and what will the one who himself needs treatment, give treatment to others.”