Bengaluru: The Congress on Thursday lashed out at Al-Qaeda for wading into the hijab controversy in Karnataka and said the banned terrorist organisation has no business to comment about the internal affairs of the country. The grand old party also strongly condemned Al-Qaeda chief Ayman Al-Zawahiri for praising college student Muskan Khan for defending the headscarf. It also charged the BJP and right-wing organisations with trying to 'polarise' and 'vitiate' the atmosphere of Karnataka with an eye on the 2023 Assembly polls.
"Let me make it amply clear in most unequivocal terms that we condemn the statement of Al-Qaeda. Al-Qaeda is a terrorist organisation, it is a banned organisation, and it has no business to comment anything about the internal affairs of our country... Congress party strongly condemns it," Congress General Secretary Ajay Maken told reporters here. Maken said his party condemned the behaviour of the Karnataka Home Minister and demanded the sacking of Araga Jnanendra besides booking a case against him, alleging that he tried to disturb peace.
"Both of them are doing the same thing, their statements are polarising and vitiating the atmosphere of the country..... Karnataka has a composite culture and that is why Bengaluru and the state is the most favoured destination for businessmen, investors throughout the world. Please don't polarise this atmosphere," he added. Zawahiri has said "we must stop being deceived by the mirage of the pagan Hindu democracy".
In an 8.43-minute video clip released by the terror group online, and verified by the American SITE Intelligence Group, Zawahiri also showered praises on Karnataka college student Muskan Khan for confronting a group of students opposing hijab in her college in early February. Jnanendra had on Wednesday claimed that the recent murder of a 22-year-old youth here was because he did not know Urdu, but subsequently retracted it by stating that the incident was actually over road rage.
Also read: Muskan's father distances himself from Zawahiri's comments
Further noting that whether the BJP or Al-Qaeda, who so ever is trying to polarise, is not only vitiating the atmosphere, but is also damaging the economy of Karnataka, Maken said Al-Qaeda has no business to say anything about our internal matters; India is a democratic country and people here are strong enough to take care of their problems and solve them by themselves. On the recent incidents of right wing groups demanding boycotting of halal meat, non-hindu traders in temple fairs, and ban on loudspeakers at mosques, he said they are doing it now to divert the attention of people from the "failures of the BJP government and 40 percent (commission) corruption charge against it".
"Karnataka is the state which has the highest level of corruption in the country. They want to divert attention from the price rise.....they don't want people to ask them questions on these issues... also unemployment. They are afraid of the recent success of the Congress in byelections and in local body polls," he said. Asking people of the state to "read behind things", Maken said, "these people are right wingers here, Al-Qaeda is right wingers somewhere else. So one right winger is trying to help the other right winger....so both are right wingers, and they are trying to polarise."
The Congress will counter these things by taking up real issues, which impacts the common man, he said, adding that "in Karnataka the party has been performing exceedingly well and that is why most of the issues (like hijab, halal) are originating here. It is because the BJP here is scared." State Congress President D K Shivakumar criticizing the state Home Minister Jnanendra for his statement on a murder case said, he lacks "basic commonsense and is unfit to continue in the post".
"He (Jnanendra) has made a statement to disturb the peace in the society and has misled the people. I urge the Police Commissioner and the Director General of police to book a case against him... His statement was to incite people and create hatred between communities, and also influence the investigation. He should be arrested," he said. Also urging Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai to immediately dismiss the Home Minister, Shivakumar said if a suo moto case is not booked against him by the police, the Congress will file a private complaint.
PTI
