BJP lawmaker warns against buying vegetables from Muslim vendors to keep safe from virus

[N.Siddiqui]

BJP lawmaker warns against buying vegetables from Muslim vendors to keep safe from virus
Dawn.com Updated April 29, 2020
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Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lawmaker Suresh Tiwari (in yellow). — Photo courtesy The Wire/Facebook


A lawmaker from India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Suresh Tiwari from Uttar Pradesh, has asked people of his constituency not to buy vegetables from Muslim vendors to protect themselves from the coronavirus, Indian media reported on Tuesday.

In a widely circulated video on Indian social media, Tiwari can be seen telling people to "keep one thing in mind [...] do not buy vegetables from miyan (Muslims)".

Read: In Modi's India, virus fallout inflames divisions between Muslims and Hindus

Talking to Indian publication The Wire, Tiwari later confirmed he had made those remarks "around April 17-18", and defended his statement by saying he had heard reports from people in his constituency that Muslim vendors were "spitting on vegetables before selling them".

He said he "advised the people to [not buy vegetables from them] so they could protect themselves from the coronavirus".

Referring to himself as a "legislator who was listening to a complaint", Tiwari questioned what was wrong in his statement.

While talking to The Indian Express Tiwari referred to a congregation of the Tableeghi Jamaat in Delhi last month, which was linked to dozens of infections and several deaths, and said: "Everyone can see what Jamaat members have done in the country".

State BJP spokesperson Rakesh Tripathi said the party did "not endorse such statements" and would question the legislator over his remarks.

The Wire quoted BJP national president JP Nadda as saying that Tiwari's statement was "irresponsible and will not be tolerated by the party".

All India Radio News in a post on Twitter said the BJP issued a show cause notice to the legislator over his remarks "targeting a particular community".


All India Radio News

✔@airnewsalerts
https://twitter.com/airnewsalerts/status/1255161789794275329

BJP has issued a show cause notice to party Uttar Pradesh MLA Suresh Tiwari for his remarks targeting people of a particular community.BJP National President J P Nadda asked UP BJP President to take action against the MLA. Mr Nadda said such comments are unacceptable.


328
8:47 PM - Apr 28, 2020
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Fanning hate
The coronavirus has exacerbated festering divisions between the country's majority Hindu population and its sizeable Muslim minority in a country already reeling from communal violence triggered by the BJP-led government's contentious citizenship law that fast-tracks citizenship for newcomers who belong to six religions, but excludes Muslims.

Since the virus outbreak hampered lives in the Indian capital, many Muslim vendors have seen their livelihoods threatened by the establishment of quarantine zones in densely packed areas like New Delhi's Dharavi.

Many Muslims feel unfairly blamed for spreading the disease after a cluster emerged at a gathering of Tableeghi Jamaat in New Delhi last month.

Sensational news coverage about the event, fanned by some Hindu nationalist politicians, helped spur the trending topic “Coronajihad” on Indian social media earlier in April.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP government has since faced criticism from several quarters for fanning the religious divide after the head of the Tableeghi Jamaat was charged with culpable homicide earlier this month for the coronavirus surge in the country.

Yesterday, in a strongly worded statement, Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mahmooq Qureshi urged the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and its member countries to condemn vilification of Indian Muslims for allegedly spreading the coronavirus.

Read: 'Cannot stand by and let another Gujarat happen': Qureshi asks OIC to stop attack on Muslims in India

The same day, the United States Commission for International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) recommended that India be declared a “country of particular concern” for religious freedom – a designation used against a nation guilty of particularly severe violations of religious freedom under the US International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) of 1998.

The panel noted that this was the first time since 2004 that India was being designated on the religious freedom blacklist.

https://www.dawn.com/news/1553175/b...s-from-muslim-vendors-to-keep-safe-from-virus

 

[YeBeWarned]

 

[Gandhi G in da house]

BJP will suffer if they don't take immediate action against such idiots. Reprimands are just not enough anymore.

 

[xeuss]

BJP will suffer if they don't take immediate action against such idiots. Reprimands are just not enough anymore.

I disagree. BJP thrives because of this.

 

[Gandhi G in da house]

I disagree. BJP thrives because of this.

Such extreme right wing politics has never worked in India for long. BJP lost the elections in 2004 after the Gujarat riots in 2002. Despite all the sloganeering in Delhi, they lost badly to Kejriwal this year. BJP has to move closer towards the centre if they don't want to lose the next elections. At this point, the only reason they are winning is because there is no decent opposition left. Not on their own merit. If someone decent comes along, BJP will be in trouble at the central level as well.

 

[xeuss]

Such extreme right wing politics has never worked in India for long. BJP lost the elections in 2004 after the Gujarat riots in 2002. Despite all the sloganeering in Delhi, they lost badly to Kejriwal this year. BJP has to move closer towards the centre if they don't want to lose the next elections. At this point, the only reason they are winning is because there is no decent opposition left. Not on their own merit. If someone decent comes along, BJP will be in trouble at the central level as well.

True...lack of an effective opposition has helped them. In states where BJP has lost, people were basically tired of the BJP and not because the Congress offered anything revolutionary.

But it is very difficult to defeat the politics of religion and hate with platitudes of economy, social services and other normal societal concerns.

 

[Thamizh Puli]

if this is true and the guy said that to his constituents he should be prosecuted for religious discrimination

 

[Gandhi G in da house]

if this is true and the guy said that to his constituents he should be prosecuted for religious discrimination

I have lost faith in BJP that they will ever take action against these kinds. Look at all those who did the Goli Maro sloganeering in Delhi. They did nothing.

 

[Chhatrapati]

Such extreme right wing politics has never worked in India for long. BJP lost the elections in 2004 after the Gujarat riots in 2002. Despite all the sloganeering in Delhi, they lost badly to Kejriwal this year. BJP has to move closer towards the centre if they don't want to lose the next elections. At this point, the only reason they are winning is because there is no decent opposition left. Not on their own merit. If someone decent comes along, BJP will be in trouble at the central level as well.

This whole lack of opposition is made-up since Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi congress never really recovered at the national level. BJP already is a consolidated cadre party, unlike congress which runs like an empire. The only issue right now is BJP has turned the national election into a presidential-style election, something congress never foresaw, unless they take the attention away from Modi, to his cabinet or to Chief Ministers, there is no hope. National election and state elections are fought on a different style thanks to IG who messed up the system. As seen, many surveys showed if BJP were to have a national election right now in Delhi, people would still vote for BJP like before.

 

[PradoTLC]

BJP lawmaker warns against buying vegetables from Muslim vendors to keep safe from virus
Dawn.com Updated April 29, 2020
Facebook Count
Twitter Share

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lawmaker Suresh Tiwari (in yellow). — Photo courtesy The Wire/Facebook


A lawmaker from India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Suresh Tiwari from Uttar Pradesh, has asked people of his constituency not to buy vegetables from Muslim vendors to protect themselves from the coronavirus, Indian media reported on Tuesday.

In a widely circulated video on Indian social media, Tiwari can be seen telling people to "keep one thing in mind [...] do not buy vegetables from miyan (Muslims)".

Read: In Modi's India, virus fallout inflames divisions between Muslims and Hindus

Talking to Indian publication The Wire, Tiwari later confirmed he had made those remarks "around April 17-18", and defended his statement by saying he had heard reports from people in his constituency that Muslim vendors were "spitting on vegetables before selling them".

He said he "advised the people to [not buy vegetables from them] so they could protect themselves from the coronavirus".

Referring to himself as a "legislator who was listening to a complaint", Tiwari questioned what was wrong in his statement.

While talking to The Indian Express Tiwari referred to a congregation of the Tableeghi Jamaat in Delhi last month, which was linked to dozens of infections and several deaths, and said: "Everyone can see what Jamaat members have done in the country".

State BJP spokesperson Rakesh Tripathi said the party did "not endorse such statements" and would question the legislator over his remarks.

The Wire quoted BJP national president JP Nadda as saying that Tiwari's statement was "irresponsible and will not be tolerated by the party".

All India Radio News in a post on Twitter said the BJP issued a show cause notice to the legislator over his remarks "targeting a particular community".


All India Radio News

✔@airnewsalerts

BJP has issued a show cause notice to party Uttar Pradesh MLA Suresh Tiwari for his remarks targeting people of a particular community.BJP National President J P Nadda asked UP BJP President to take action against the MLA. Mr Nadda said such comments are unacceptable.


328
8:47 PM - Apr 28, 2020
Twitter Ads info and privacy

66 people are talking about this





Fanning hate
The coronavirus has exacerbated festering divisions between the country's majority Hindu population and its sizeable Muslim minority in a country already reeling from communal violence triggered by the BJP-led government's contentious citizenship law that fast-tracks citizenship for newcomers who belong to six religions, but excludes Muslims.

Since the virus outbreak hampered lives in the Indian capital, many Muslim vendors have seen their livelihoods threatened by the establishment of quarantine zones in densely packed areas like New Delhi's Dharavi.

Many Muslims feel unfairly blamed for spreading the disease after a cluster emerged at a gathering of Tableeghi Jamaat in New Delhi last month.

Sensational news coverage about the event, fanned by some Hindu nationalist politicians, helped spur the trending topic “Coronajihad” on Indian social media earlier in April.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP government has since faced criticism from several quarters for fanning the religious divide after the head of the Tableeghi Jamaat was charged with culpable homicide earlier this month for the coronavirus surge in the country.

Yesterday, in a strongly worded statement, Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mahmooq Qureshi urged the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and its member countries to condemn vilification of Indian Muslims for allegedly spreading the coronavirus.

Read: 'Cannot stand by and let another Gujarat happen': Qureshi asks OIC to stop attack on Muslims in India

The same day, the United States Commission for International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) recommended that India be declared a “country of particular concern” for religious freedom – a designation used against a nation guilty of particularly severe violations of religious freedom under the US International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) of 1998.

The panel noted that this was the first time since 2004 that India was being designated on the religious freedom blacklist.

https://www.dawn.com/news/1553175/b...s-from-muslim-vendors-to-keep-safe-from-virus

india;s hate cycle continues

 

[Yousafzai_M]

Well done. I hope it continues and starts riots between Muslims and Hindus all over Banyaland.