BJP leader Giriraj Singh has once again triggered controversy by claiming that Islamic seminary Deoband in Saharanpur is a factory producing terrorists.
Calling it an "aatankvaad ki Gangotri", the Union Minister on Tuesday said that Deoband produces terrorists like Hafiz Saeed.
"I had once said earlier that Deoband is the Gangotri of terrorists. All most-wanted-terrorists of the world came from Deoband, including Hafiz Saeed or any of the others," he said.
"These people are not against CAA, they are against India. This is a kind of a Khilafat movement," said Giriraj Singh while attacking the ongoing anti-CAA protests in Deoband.
Similar to Delhi's Shaheen Bagh, Deoband has seen fierce anti-CAA protests over the past months. The women began their protest on January 27, and have so far ignored appeals to end their stir. According to a Hindustan Times article from last week, clerics attempting to convince them were greeted with "go back" slogans. A few women also threw bangles at them.
Reportedly, Mohatmim, the Vice Chancellor of Islamic seminary Darul Uloom appealed to the women in light of the government's reiteration that no decision had yet been taken on a pan India NRC.
The organisation later distanced itself from the appeal, adding in a statement on Friday evening last week that it hadn't appealed to the women to end their protest against the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act. The publication quoted spokesperson Ashraf Usmani as saying that Mohatmim's views were his own and did not reflect that of Darul Uloom.
Giriraj Singh had earlier alleged that 'suicide bombers' are being raised in Shaheen Bagh.
"Shaheen Bagh is not just a protest movement anymore, suicide bombers are being raised here. A conspiracy against the state is being hatched in its capital," the Union Minister for Animal Husbandry and Fisheries tweeted, sharing a video purportedly from the protests. Singh had made a similar statement in December too.
Giriraj Singh has made many controversial comments in recent times. At the beginning of this year he had alleged that Indian children go abroad and "start eating beef". He said this was "because we did not teach them about our culture and traditional values".
More recently, he had made headlines after suggesting that scientists should conduct more research on cow dung. This, he opined, could make it financially viable for farmers to keep their cows even after they have stopped producing milk.
(With inputs from agencies)
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