BJP leaders smear SRK over intolerance remark
Party MP Adityanath likens actor to Lashkar founder Hafiz Saeed, Vijaywargiya retracts tweets after furore
NEW DELHI/LUCKNOW: Controversial BJP parliamentarian Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday compared Shah Rukh Khan with Pakistani terrorist Hafiz Saeed as he joined a raft of party MPs who defied a gag from the leadership to stop their tirade against the Bollywood star.
The NDA government struggled to keep the BJP controversialists on a leash after Khan commented on his 50th birthday on Monday that there was “nothing worse than religious intolerance and that it would take India to the dark ages”.
Party general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya ignited the flames on Tuesday with a tweet that Khan “lives in India but his soul is in Pakistan”. He withdrew the tweet a day later after it generated outrage and the BJP leadership issued a strict warning against inflammatory comments.
He said had there been intolerance in India “after Amitabh, Shah Rukh would not have been the most popular actor.”
But his statement triggered a free-for-all as party leaders Adityanath and Manoj Tiwari kept the rant going.
The BJP MP for Gorakhpur, Adityanath, said if “all Hindus stop watching Khan’s movies, he would wander on the streets like ordinary Muslims”.
“I am saying these people are speaking a terrorist’s language. I think there is no difference between the language of Shah Rukh Khan and Hafiz Saeed. We welcome that people go there (Pakistan), at least people who defame India will understand their own originality.”
This prompted Saeed, the 26/11 mastermind, to welcome Khan to Pakistan he intends to switch nations.
The Congress threw its weight behind Khan, hailing him as an icon of cosmopolitan India. “He has the right to speak his mind as a citizen of India. The BJP can’t question anyone,” the party’s deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha, Anand Sharma, said.
The tussle BJP-Congress tussle over intolerance took a fresh turn after the principal opposition party asked the government to stop acting like the sole representative of society.
The BJP disassociated itself from all controversial remark, saying these didn’t reflect the party’s view. The government tried damage control with senior minister Ravi Shankar Prasad calling Khan as a great artist who was loved by all. “He is extraordinary talent as a film artist of versatile genius and is universally applauded by all Indians alike.”
This did not help stop others from taking potshots at the star. Sadhvi Prachi, a controversial Hindutva leader, had also hit out at Shah Rukh yesterday, dubbing him a “Pakistani agent” for his comments that there was “extreme intolerance” in the country.
Yoga guru Baba Ramdev, who had campaigned for the BJP during elections, joined the intolerance row asking Khan to return all the money he earned after winning the Padma Shri in case he plans to return his award.
BJP MP from Delhi, Manoj Tiwari, who is a film personality turned politician, said: “He has been close to the Congress party. If there was any kind of intolerance in the country, he wouldn’t have been one of the top superstars in India. He should keep this fact in his mind that whatever statement he makes, it makes a big impact.”