'Do Those With Beards and Skull Caps Speak Pure Marathi?': BJP's Nitesh Rane Once Again Targets Muslims
New Delhi: Maharashtra minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Nitesh Rane on Thursday (July 3) targeted the Muslim community and made communal remarks while speaking about a recent incident wherein Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) supporters were seen beating up a man for not speaking Marathi.
While speaking at the legislature complex, Rane questioned that while a “Hindu man” was beaten up, if "those who wear skull caps" speak the Marathi well.
"A Hindu man was beaten up....Why are poor Hindus being assaulted? If you have the courage, try going to Null Bazaar or Mohammad Ali Road and show your strength there," said Rane, reported Press Trust of India.
Null Bazaar and Mohammad Ali Road are localities in south Mumbai with high Muslim population.
Rane’s statement came after a video went viral on social media showing MNS workers beating a shop-keeper in Bhayandar area on the outskirts of Mumbai for allegedly refusing to speak in Marathi.
"Do those with beards and skull caps in Mohammad Ali Road (area) speak pure Marathi? Do Javed Akhtar or Aamir Khan speak Marathi? You do not have the courage to make them speak in Marathi, but you choose to assault poor Hindus instead," said Rane.
He termed the controversy over Hindi as an attempt to “divide Hindus.”
"This is a conspiracy to turn the country into an Islamic state. Through love jihad, land jihad and other tactics, attempts are being made to reduce the number of Hindus in Mumbai. This violence is part of that strategy. hy do you not go to Malvani and assault people there? Do they speak in pure Marathi?" said the minister.
Rane said that the present BJP-led Mahayuti government was elected by the Hindus and is rooted in Hindutva ideology.
Last year Rane had openly threatened the Muslim community and the police during a press conference inside the office of the police commissioner of the Mira Bhayandar region. He was holding the press conference over the alleged manhandling of Hindu youth by a group of Muslim youth after the former entered a Muslim locality late at night, honking, playing loud music and chanting “Jai Shri Ram”.
Rane used offensive language to address the Muslim community, made provocative statements, and urged the Hindu community to “unite and retaliate”. He further went on to verbally attack the police inspector of the Naya Nagar police station for allegedly “siding” with the Muslim community.
A few hours after Rane’s press conference, violence had broken out in the region. Young men, sporting saffron flags and chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’, ran amok in parts of the city, vandalising shops belonging to Muslims. Many Muslim youth were injured in the attack.
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