Describing the Palestine situation as not just a matter concerning Muslims but humanity, Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi, on Saturday night, obliquely criticised Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s stance on pro-Palestine statements.
Speaking at a Jalsa Rahmatulil Alameen public meeting in Amberpet, Mr.Owaisi said, “A Chief Minister from the country said, ‘If somebody names Palestine, book him’. Listen, Chief Minister, I am wearing the flag of Palestine with the tricolour. I am standing for Palestine and will continue to do so, God willing. Palestine is not the issue of just Muslims or Arabs. It is an issue of humanity. We want to tell this ‘Baba’ Chief Minister that if you want to book a case, then you will have to book a case against the MEA (Ministry of External Affairs). If Prime Minister [Narendra] Modi ji comes to Uttar Pradesh, then a case would have to be booked against him as well.”
The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president described Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as “the devil”, and urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to diplomatically try to put an end to the bombardment of Gaza by Israel. “You said that India stands in solidarity with the Palestinian people. To display that solidarity. Stop them. Out of 21 lakh people, 10 lakh have been displaced. That cruel Netanyahu is shaitaan (devil). He is a war criminal,” he said.
Mr. Owaisi said that Mahatma Gandhi had remarked that Palestine belongs to the Arabs. He further alleged that the current government was “silent” on the issue and that for India to have a seat at the United Nations with voting rights, it is imperative for the country to speak about such “war crimes”.
