Expel Abu Azmi from Samajwadi Party, bring him to UP and we'll 'take care': UP CM Adityanath
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Lucknow (PTI): Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday asked the Samajwadi Party to take a stand on the controversial remarks made by one of its leaders and Maharashtra MLA Abu Azmi, demanding that the party must expel him for glorifying Mughal ruler Aurangzeb.
Adityanath also asked the Samajwadi Party (SP) to bring Azmi to UP and said "Uttar Pradesh knows well how to take care of such people".
"You (SP) must decide your position (on the Abu Azmi row)," Adityanath said in the Legislative Council following which the Samajwadi Party members started making remarks.
Hitting back, he said, "Make an official announcement and expel that wretched person from your party. Then send him to Uttar Pradesh and we will take care of the rest."
Escalating his attack, Adityanath said, "A person, who feels ashamed of the legacy of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, but considers Aurangzeb his hero does he even have the right to live in India?"
The chief minister further accused the Samajwadi Party of double standards.
"On one hand, you criticize the Kumbh and on the other, you glorify Aurangzeb -- a ruthless, fanatical ruler who destroyed temples and crushed India's faith. What is stopping you from taking action against this leader?" he asked.
Adityanath insisted that the Samajwadi Party must publicly condemn the statements and expel the leader responsible.
"Why is the Samajwadi Party not disowning him? SP should immediately denounce his remarks and remove him from the party," he asserted.
Issuing a direct challenge, Adityanath said, "Either call him to a public gathering and make him clarify or send him to Uttar Pradesh. We do not take long to deal with such people here."
The chief minister slammed the Samajwadi Party, accusing it of glorifying Aurangzeb while disregarding India's cultural and spiritual heritage.
"It is unfortunate that the Samajwadi Party considers Aurangzeb as its ideal. Even Aurangzeb's father, Shah Jahan, wrote in his autobiography that he wished no one would ever have such a wretched son," Adityanath said in the Legislative Council.
His scathing attack comes amid an ongoing controversy in Maharashtra over Azmi's remarks.
Azmi was on Wednesday suspended from the Maharashtra Assembly till the end of the ongoing Budget Session over his remarks eulogising Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.
The chief minister criticized the Samajwadi Party's deviation from the principles of socialist leader Dr Ram Manohar Lohia, who upheld India's cultural unity despite being a political rival of the Congress.
"I want to tell my friends in the Samajwadi Party --even if you do not take pride in India's heritage, at least follow the ideology of the leader whose name you use for political gain," Adityanath said.
Quoting Dr Lohia, Adityanath added, "Lohia believed that India stands on three pillars -- Lord Ram, Lord Krishna and Lord Shiva. As long as Indians revere these great figures, no power in the world can stop India from remaining India." The chief minister alleged the Samajwadi Party's purpose now seems to be to oppose India's cultural traditions.
"Today the Samajwadi Party has strayed so far from Lohia's ideology that attacking the legacies of Lord Ram, Lord Krishna and Lord Shiva has become its primary goal," he said.
Referring to Aurangzeb's reign, the chief minister said, "Aurangzeb imprisoned his own father Shah Jahan in Agra Fort, depriving him of water and left him to suffer."
"If the Samajwadi Party feels proud of Aurangzeb, they should visit a library in Patna and read Shah Jahan's autobiography where he laments that even a Hindu son is better than Aurangzeb because a Hindu serves his elderly parents in their lifetime, performs their last rites with devotion, and offers water for their souls. Meanwhile, Aurangzeb left his own father to die of thirst," Adityanath said.
"No civilized Muslim today names their son Aurangzeb because they know that a person's deeds define them. 'Yatha naam tatha kaam' (as the name, so the deed)," he added.
Demanding the Samajwadi Party to clarify its position, the chief minister asked why it venerates a ruler, who imposed jizya tax, persecuted non-Muslims and attempted to Islamize India.
"The SP must answer whether it truly considers a tyrant like Aurangzeb its role model, a ruler who attacked India's faith and traditions," Adityanath said.
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
