Hindustan Times (Amritsar)

JAVADEKAR BACKS ‘TERRORIST’ REMARK

- HT Correspond­ent htreporter@hindustant­imes.com ■

Days after Parvesh Verma allegedly called Arvind Kejriwal a “terrorist”, Union minister Prakash Javadekar said the CM had called himself an “anarchist” and there was not much difference between the two.

NEWDELHI: Days after BJP’s West Delhi MP Parvesh Verma allegedly called chief minister Arvind Kejriwal a “terrorist”, Union minister Prakash Javadekar on Monday said Kejriwal had called himself an “anarchist” and there is not much “difference between an anarchist and a terrorist”.

Flanked by Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari and Union minister of state finance Anurag Thakur, Javadekar said, “He is now asking with a sad face, ‘am I a terrorist?’ You are a terrorist…You yourself had said you are an anarchist. There is not much of a difference between an anarchist and a terrorist.”

Thakur and Verma were earlier dropped from the BJP’s star campaigner list on orders from the Election Commission after their comments were found to be violating the model code of conduct. The commission had found Thakur’s chant of “Desk ke gaddaro ko” at an election rally in Rithala undesirabl­e and objectiona­ble. Verma, on the other hand, had given an interview to a news agency and made objectiona­ble remarks against protesters at Shaheen Bagh.

While addressing a press conference, Javadekar stressed on the terrorist remark and said, “The people of Delhi did not know his real character and hence they supported him but in the last five years now the mask of innocence from his face has disappeare­d and he has been exposed.”

The AAP hit back, with Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh challengin­g the BJP to get Kejriwal arrested if they have the “audacity” to prove that he is a terrorist.

Singh said in a press conference, “It is shameful that top BJP leaders including MPs and chief ministers [referring to Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath], and now a union minister like Prakash Javadekar are using such unparliame­ntary words against a political leader like Arvind Kejriwal. Words such as terrorist.”

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Prakash Javadekar
PTI ■ Prakash Javadekar

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