Srinagar, June 23: Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) chief spokesperson, Salman Nizami, strongly criticised the Congress party for its complete silence over the recent attacks on Muslims, especially in Congress-ruled states Himachal Pradesh and Telangana.
In a statement, Nizami questioned the party’s failure to address incidents of lynching and vandalism targeting the Muslim community. He pointed to a specific incident involving a shopkeeper named Javid, who was unjustly booked despite police clarification that the picture he posted on social media was not beef. He condemned the lack of action against those who vandalised Javid’s shop, emphasising the people’s growing insecurity and distress.
He accused Congress of exploiting the Muslim vote bank without genuinely protecting their rights and interests. “Congress, which fooled Muslims to get votes, is silent on the lynching,” Nizami stated. He also criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who, despite his recent Bharat Jodo Yatra and the “Mohabbat Ki Dukaan” slogan, has remained silent on these atrocities against Muslims.
He stated, “I am surprised that almost no Congress leader has condemned the incidents, be it in Himachal or Telangana,” the DPAP leader said. “When lynching was on the rise in BJP-ruled states, it was the then leader of the opposition, Ghulam Nabi Azad who raised the issue in Parliament. Even he is speaking out today, but in both BJP-ruled and Congress-ruled states, no opposition leader except Ghulam Nabi Azad has spoken on this. It proves they only use the Muslims for vote bank. In J&K, Congress gave a ticket to a rapist supporter. It is clear Congress is no one’s well-wisher; this is one of the reasons why we left the party,” he said.