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A defiant BJP on Wednesday looked set to brazen out the Opposition’s attack over the JNU row with different ministers asserting that the party will fight “anti-national” elements of the kind who staged the much-talked about protest in JNU last week.
The ruling party simultaneously announced a three-day ‘Jan Swabhiman Abhiyan’ (campaign for people’s self-pride) between February 18 and 20 during which BJP leaders and workers will hold several events to spread awareness about the Opposition bid to “mislead the nation”.
The party’s hard line was echoed by the Minister of State for Parliamentary and Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi who said “anti-national events at JNU” and some other places are a fight between “Break India” and “Build India”. Nationalistic commitment to unite India will destroy “destructive conspiracy” to divide the nation, he said.
Another Minister and Bihar MP Giriraj Singh went on television to demand that JNU should be “shut down”. Party MP Chandan Mitra wrote a signed piece for a television website echoing the same demand.
Meanwhile, dismissing the violent incidents in courtrooms where JNU Students’ Union President Kanhaiya Kumar and journalists were beaten up by lawyers sympathetic to the BJP, Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju kicked up a storm by asking whether anyone had been murdered.
On being asked why police had not acted against lawyers and others thrashing journalists, students and teachers at the premises of the court hearing the JNU case, he said: “There may be issues of scuffle. Was there a murder?”
Meanwhile, the BJP gave details of the campaign against the “ill-attempts of some political powers to mislead the nation by projecting recent anti-national incidents in the very prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru University as freedom of expression”.
Party workers will hold dharnas, run signature campaigns, play patriotic songs and hold meetings, among other events.
It has also decided to aggressively put forth its stand on the JNU incident and raise the testimony of Pakistani-American terrorist David Headley during the upcoming Parliament session.
“Deshdrohi ke samarthak Hafiz Saeed ke samarthak hain. Rahul Gandhi ko sharm aani chahiye. JNU ko band kar dena chahiye (Those who support anti-national elements are supporters of Hafiz Saeed. Rahul Gandhi should be ashamed of himself. Shut down JNU),” said Giriraj Singh.
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