Congress leader Tauqeer Raza Khan.  |  Photo Credit: Times Now
Key Highlights
- Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls will be held in seven phases starting February 10 and will end on March 7
- The counting of votes will be done on March 10
New Delhi: Congress inductee and Islamic cleric Tauqeer Raza Khan, who was recently booked for making derogatory comments against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has yet again courted controversy, this time sympathising with terrorists killed in the Batla House encounter on 19 September 2008.
“Maine 2009 mein Congress ko bola tha ‘abhi musalmaano ne aapko parole pe chhoda hai’. Unhone tab humse kaha ke ‘agar hum sarkar mein ayenge, toh Batla House encounter ki jaanch karwayenge’. Agar unhone tab jaanch ki hoti toh sach saamne aata ke jo maarey gaye the woh aatankwaadi nahi thay. Unko shaheedon ka darja milna chahiye,” he was heard saying.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Sambit Patra came down heavily on Khan for his latest remark, and said that the Congress party had raked up the Batla House encounter issue even during the 2012 Uttar Pradesh elections.
“Even during the 2012 Uttar Pradesh elections, the Congress’ agenda was ‘Batla House’… Their needle of appeasement is still stuck there,” Patra said.
Khan was earlier booked for reportedly issuing threats against the Hindu community. He joined the Congress party just ahead of the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.
After joining the ‘grand old party’ of Indian politics, Khan yesterday appealed to all Muslims in Uttar Pradesh to vote for Congress if they “want to maintain peace”.
“We had resentment with Congress, but the BJP took advantage of it. We are responsible for the loss of the country. This step has been taken to rectify that mistake. I request all the UP people, especially Muslims if you want to maintain peace here, vote Congress,” Khan said at a press conference in Lucknow on Tuesday.
Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls will be held in seven phases starting February 10 and will end on March 7. The polling will be held on February 10, 14, 20, 23, 27 and March 3 and 7. The counting of votes will be done on March 10.