Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Jan 10: A war of words has ensued between the BJP and the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) over its president and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi’s remark that a woman wearing a hijab would one day become the prime minister of India and the BJP in a sharp retort said those wanting to see a hijab-clad woman as prime minister must go to Pakistan.
Mr Owaisi has been campaigning across Maharashtra in the local body elections in Mumbai and elsewhere in the state. In a speech in Solapur, the AIMIM president cited the Indian constitution that allows any citizen of the country to occupy the top post. Pointing out that India’s Constitution accords equal status to people from all communities, unlike in Pakistan, where members of only one religion can occupy the top constitutional posts, Mr Owaisi said he hoped a hijab-clad woman would one day become India’s Prime Minister.
“The constitution of Pakistan clearly states that a person belonging to only one religion can become the prime minister of the country. Baba Sahib (BR Ambedkar—who headed the committee that drafted India’s constitution)’s constitution says that any citizen of India can become Prime Minister, Chief Minister, or mayor. It is my dream that a day will come when a hijab-clad daughter will become the prime minister of this country,” Owaisi said.
“By the grace of Almighty, the day will come, when neither I nor the present generation will be around, but a daughter wearing a hijab would become the Prime Minister of India,” the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president said. “I am confident that the day will surely come…The hate you are spreading against Muslims will not last long,” he said, targeting the ruling party.
The BJP asserted that it was not possible in India, and to have such dreams fulfilled, one must move to Islamabad or Karachi. “Asaduddin Owaisi shouldn’t be so audacious in a Hindurashtra. 90% of our population are Hindus. No woman wearing a hijab or burka can become the prime minister or mayor in Mumbai. Those aspiring to be one can go to Islamabad or Karachi. They have no place here,” said Maharashtra minister and BJP leader Nitesh Rane.
Mr Owaisi’s remarks remark also drew a sharp reaction from the ruling BJP, which said through his “irresponsible” statement, the Hyderabad MP was presenting only half-truth as Muslim women were against the practice of wearing hijab. Reacting to it, BJP MP Anil Bonde said Mr Owaisi was making irresponsible statements, and accused him of presenting only half-truth.
Claiming that Muslim women were against wearing hijab as nobody wanted subjugation, he said women in Iran were protesting against this practice. He alleged that demographic imbalance was rising in India, and urged Hindus to unite.
Referring to the ongoing debate over who will become the Mayor of Mumbai, with the BJP asserting that the next first citizen of the State capital would be a Marathi and a Hindu, Mr Owaisi said such discussions surface only during elections. He alleged that Fadnavis, Shinde and Pawar were misleading people, and urged voters to give them a “befitting reply” in the polls. “We will not become victims of your conspiracy,” he said.
He also accused the ruling parties of not running the government as per the Constitution. “The foundation of their rule is hatred. They claim to be friends of minorities and Dalits, but they are not. They are also not doing anything for farmers,” Mr Owaisi alleged.
Another BJP leader, Shehzad Poonawala, dared Owaisi to elect a burqa-clad woman as the president of his party.
“Owaisi miya, there is no restriction in the Constitution on whether the Prime Minister should be someone wearing a hijab or not. Anyone can become Prime Minister, but first, win votes. Before dreaming of becoming Prime Minister, Owaisi miya, why don’t you first make a hijab-wearing woman, a burqa-clad woman, or at least someone from the Pasmanda community the president of your own party?” said Poonawala.
“Stop this lecture on secularism…Don’t try to become a version of (Zohran) Mamdani here. In Maharashtra, especially in BMC, only a Hindu-Marathi will become the mayor,” the BJP spokesperson asserted. There won’t be a second Pakistan in India, warned Union Minister and BJP leader Giriraj Singh.
“Owaisi, if you have “Ghazwa-e-Hind’ in your mind, then listen carefully: because of the Congress party’s mistakes and its politics of appeasement, whatever happened in the past will not be allowed to happen again in this country. There will be no second Pakistan formed here. The Constitution will prevail, and the rule of law will be enforced,” said Singh.
