Bharatiya Janata Party leader Kapil Mishra on Thursday claimed there will be a match between India and Pakistan on the streets of Delhi on February 8. He was referring to the Delhi Assembly elections, which will be held on February 8, and the results of which will be out on February 11.
In another tweet, with which he shared a link to an article in which Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said he stood with protestors at Shaheen Bagh, Mishra claimed: “Aam Aadmi Party and Congress have created mini-Pakistans like Shaheen Bagh. In response, Hindustan will face them on February 8. Whenever the anti-nationals create a Pakistan in India, the nationalists’ Hindustan will face them.”
People, mostly women and children, have been protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act at Shaheen Bagh in New Delhi for over a month now.
Justifying his comments to Times Now, Mishra accused Aam Aadmi Party leaders of stoking riots in Delhi. “In Jamia, in Jawaharlal Nehru University, in Seelampur, riots are taking place, buses are being burnt, policemen attacked,” he claimed.
The BJP leader added that the Shaheen Bagh protestors have blocked and closed off the road. He alleged that AAP has created a “mini-Pakistan” in Delhi because it failed to do any work in the state over the last five years.
Mishra said that the people should not protest because the Citizenship Amendment Act has been passed by both Houses of Parliament. The BJP leader accused the Shaheen Bagh protestors of not accepting the Indian Constitution.
Justifying his use of the word “mini-Pakistan”, Mishra alleged that the protestors in Delhi have been pelting stones at the police and calling for “Azad Kashmir”, just like it is done in Pakistan. Mishra said that while the demonstrators have a right to protest, they cannot illegally occupy public places.
Delhi BJP leader Vijay Goel has distanced his party from Mishra’s remarks, Times Now reported. When asked about this, Mishra claimed that the whole country supports his remarks.
The Citizenship Amendment Act, passed by Parliament on December 11 and notified by the Centre on January 10, provides citizenship to refugees from six minority religious communities from Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Pakistan, provided they have lived in India for six years and entered the country by December 31, 2014. The Act has been widely criticised for excluding Muslims, leading to protests against it. At least 26 people died in the protests last month – 19 in Uttar Pradesh, five in Assam and two in Karnataka.
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