BJP slams Azam Khan, calls for end to politics of appeasement

New Delhi, Dec 11 (IANS) As jailed Samajwadi Party (SP) leader, Azam Khan, called on the INDIA bloc to clarify its stance on the alleged atrocities against Muslims in Rampur, BJP leader Rohan Gupta on Wednesday said that the politics of appeasement was history and the future was the politics of every Indian.

In a statement released from his jail cell, Azam Khan, one of the most prominent Muslim faces of the SP, urged his party to raise the issue of alleged atrocities against Muslims in Rampur as forcefully as it had raised the issue of the Sambhal violence.

Khan accused the INDIA bloc of remaining silent as the Muslim leadership in Rampur was being "destroyed" and called for a clear stand on the issue.

Talking to IANS, BJP National Spokesperson Rohan Gupta took a strong stand, emphasising the importance of moving away from the divisive politics of appeasement.

"The country has moved ahead a lot. The politics of Hindus and Muslims, the politics of appeasement, this has become our history. The future is the politics of every Indian, the politics of 140 crore Indians, where everyone has a right," Gupta said.

Gupta further explained that the government's focus is on ensuring equal rights for all citizens, regardless of their religion or caste.

"The new government is not against anyone but is not in favour of appeasement. Everyone has the right to equality. No one's religion or caste is seen. We are correcting what has gone wrong, and that is not wrong anywhere," he asserted.

Gupta also pointed to the Waqf Amendment Bill, which seeks to bring Waqf institutions under constitutional oversight, calling it a step away from the 'wrong' system that had existed for decades.

Gupta further asserted the ongoing rift within the INDIA bloc, particularly regarding the Congress party’s internal struggles.

Gupta said, "The results in the Lok Sabha elections speak volumes. The Congress has faced defeat everywhere."

"The party has become so lost in appeasement that even its own allies are now rejecting its leadership," he claimed.

He suggested that performance and leadership should be the primary focus within political alliances, adding that the Congress party’s failure to manage its allies has led to fractures within the alliance.

Gupta highlighted the fragmentation of the INDIA bloc in various elections, pointing to the breakdown of alliances in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, and Jammu and Kashmir.

"The reality is in front of the whole country, and the Congress will have to answer and think why such a situation is happening to them," Gupta concluded.