Congress leader Aziz Qureshi stirred up a controversy by making remarks regarding certain party members discussing religious tours and expressing their identity as "proud Hindus." Additionally, he controversially mentioned that the loss of one or two crore Muslims out of the total of 22 crores would not be a problem.
Qureshi claimed that individuals who were chanting slogans like 'Jai Ganga Maiya' and 'Jai Narmada Maiya' was a matter of great shame. Despite the backlash, he refrained from expressing remorse for his statements and issued a challenge to the party, daring them to remove him.
"I have no fear. Remove me from the party. Today, Nehru's heirs and Congress people take out religious processions, say 'Jai Ganga Maiya', and say proudly that they are Hindus. They install idols in the Congress office, it's about drowning," Qureshi said.
Addressing the status of Muslims in the nation, Qureshi also emphasised that it was crucial for all political parties, including the Congress, to recognise that the community were not their slaves.
"Why should Muslims vote for you? You don't give jobs. You don't take them in police, army or navy. Then why should Muslims vote for you?" Qureshi questioned.
A video of Qureshi's speech was posted on platform X (formerly known as Twitter) by BJP spokesperson Pankaj Chaturvedi.
Who is Aziz Qureshi?
Aziz Qureshi formerly held the position of governor in Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, and Mizoram.
On January 24, 2020, the state government designated him as the President of the Madhya Pradesh Urdu Academy.
Qureshi has also served as a cabinet minister within the Madhya Pradesh government and was elected as a Member of Parliament from Satna during the 1984 Lok Sabha election.
