Owaisi slams Pak PM; asks him to worry about his own country
Hyderabad: AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi has asked why losses were not recovered from those who indulged in damage to public property during the Jat agitation in Haryana, while money is proposed to be recovered by the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh in connection with the recent anti-CAA protests.
Owaisi, who was addressing a protest meeting at Sangareddy town near here late on Saturday night against the amended citizenship law, also said Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan need not worry about Indian Muslims.
The AIMIM president also announced that a protest meeting will be held at the historic Charminar here on January 25 against the CAA, adding "We will hoist the tricolour on January 25 midnight and recite the national anthem. The meeting would be to save the Constitution and the country."
On January 10, a peaceful march will also be taken out in Hyderabad against the CAA, he said.
Talking about the violent protests against CAA in UP, Owaisi said he condemned violence wherever it occurred but would like to ask Prime Minister Narendra Modi whether the Prevention of Destruction of Public Property Act, 1984 applied to them (UP incidents) or not.
He claimed destruction of properties worth Rs 2,000 crore occurred in the Jat agitation in Haryana in 2015.
"Destruction of Rs 2,000 crore. Modiji, you have taken money from how many? Have you taken money from those people? One paisa was not taken. Why? You did not take because they were not Muslims. Is this not a violation of Article 14 of our Constitution," he said.
How much money was recovered for the losses during the Patel agitation in Gujarat, he asked. More than 600 police vehicles were burnt and more than 1,800 government buildings were damaged during the Patel agitation, he claimed.
"Why are (you) doing this injustice that you will not take from Gujaratis, but recover money from Muslims," he said.
"...to recover that Rs 14.50 lakh, properties of Muslims were seized, (they were) locked (in UP). This law won't apply," he said.
Referring to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan posting a video, Owaisi said Khan has posted a wrong Bangladeshi video claiming it to be from India.
"Mr Khan, you worry about your own country. Mr Khan, we would like to tell you, don't ever remember us. We have rejected the message, the wrong theory of Jinnah. We are proud Indian Muslims and till the day of judgment, Inshallah, we will remain as proud Indian Muslims."
"No power on earth can take away my Indianness. No power on earth can take away my religious identity. Why because, the Constitution of India guarantees me that," he said.
The Pakistan Prime Minister should safeguard the Sikhs and stop those who attacked a Sikh gurdwara in Pakistan, Owaisi said. According to Owaisi, the CAA was only made towards making India a Hindu Rashtra.
"We are not against granting citizenship to persecuted Hindus, Christians, Sikhs from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh...but why are you doing in the name of religion (by excluding Muslims)," he said.
He challenged the Prime Minister to let the countrymen know if they plan to make (implement) NRC or not by 2024. Owaisi further said the protests against CAA, NPR and NRC should continue for another four to five months.
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India backs 'Myanmar-led, Myanmar-owned' peace process: EAM Jaishankar
New Delhi (PTI): India supports a Myanmar-led and Myanmar-owned peace process that can deliver lasting peace and development for all in the Southeast Asian country, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Wednesday.
The external affairs minister also highlighted the importance India attaches to its ties with Myanmar saying the country lies at the confluence of New Delhi's three key foreign policy priorities: 'Neighbourhood First', 'Act East', and MAHASAGAR (Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions).
Myanmar is one of India's strategic neighbours and it shares a 1,640-kilometer-long border with a number of northeastern states including militancy-hit Nagaland and Manipur.
The country has been witnessing widespread violent protests after the military seized power in a coup on February 1, 2021. The military-backed party secured a victory in Myanmar's recent general election.
Jaishankar was speaking virtually at the inauguration of the Sarsobeikman Literary Centre building in the heart of Yangon. The building has been constructed with New Delhi's assistance.
"As the world's largest democracy with 1.4 billon people living together in peace and harmony, India has regularly shared its experiences in federalism and constitutionalism with stakeholders in Myanmar," he said.
"We support an inclusive, Myanmar-led and Myanmar-owned peace process, that can deliver lasting peace and development for all in Myanmar," he added.
Jaishankar said the Sarsobeikman Centre will support the conservation and study of classical and folk literatures of Myanmar, as well as translation, archival work, creative writing, and scholarly exchanges.
"Myanmar lies at the confluence of our three key foreign policy priorities - Neighbourhood First, Act East, and MAHASAGAR including the Indo-Pacific," he said.
"Our multifaceted engagement, includes political, trade, security and cultural cooperation. When it comes to development cooperation, our engagement with Myanmar has been people-centric and demand-driven, aimed towards strengthening local economies and improving lives," the minister said.
Jaishankar said India and Myanmar have been bound together for centuries by spirituality, kinship and geography, as well as by language and literature.
"As Buddhism and Pali language and literature travelled across South Asia, they carried with them ideas, texts, and a shared intellectual heritage," he said.
