Owaisi slams Maharashtra CM RSS over Nagpur violence

Hyderabad, Mar 21 (PTI) AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi on Friday criticised Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis over the recent violence in Nagpur, accusing his government of "failing" to control the situation.
Owaisi, who also expressed concern over the Israeli attacks on Palestinians, pointed out that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had remained silent on the issue during his recent podcast with American computer scientist Lex Fridman.

Addressing a gathering, the Hyderabad MP alleged, without naming him, that a Maharashtra Minister had made a provocative statement about removing the tomb of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.
Owaisi also slammed Fadnavis for blaming a film, Chhaava, for inciting the violence.
“What were you (Fadnavis) doing? Is Nagpur not your city? They burnt ‘chadar’ with holy inscriptions. A complaint was filed to take action and later violence broke out. We condemn the violence. But you say it happened due to the film,” he said.
    “What were you doing? Is there ‘mehndi’ on your hands? It is your government, your police and it is your intelligence failure. If law and order (problem) is created, then it is because of you.”

    He claimed that the police had granted station bail to those responsible for burning the ‘chadar’ with holy inscriptions.

Targeting the RSS, Owaisi accused the Sangh of disapproving of the violence while indirectly supporting it. “ “You orchestrate everything from behind and then say 'we will pour water',” he alleged.
    The AIMIM leader also pointed out that no action was taken against ministers who had previously made provocative remarks against Muslims.

Owaisi questioned whether the rule of law would prevail or if the "willfulness" of BJP leaders would take precedence.

Citing a media report, Owaisi highlighted that Chhatrapati Shivaji's grandson, Chhatrapati Shahuji, had visited the tomb of the Mughal emperor.

Large-scale stone-pelting and arson were reported across several parts of Nagpur city on Monday evening after rumors spread that a ‘chadar’ with holy inscriptions had been burnt during protests led by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), which was demanding the removal of Aurangzeb’s tomb in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district.

Owaisi also claimed that the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre is set to introduce the Waqf Bill in Parliament after Eid.
He alleged that the government was enacting laws that would strip Muslims of their mosques and properties, citing the "wrong" legislation on triple talaq, the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) on a "religious basis," and now the Uniform Civil Code (UCC).

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)