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PM Modi appeals for peace in riot-hit Delhi, but BJP leaders’ tweets are far from pacifying

From Kapil Mishra to IT cell head Amit Malviya and general secretary B.L. Santhosh, BJP leaders have posted many incendiary messages on Twitter.

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New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Wednesday appealed to Delhi residents to maintain peace and brotherhood.

However, the comments made by some BJP leaders on social media are far from pacifying.

Minutes before PM Modi made the appeal, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s IT cell head Amit Malviya accused the media of being selective in what it showed the world about the violence.

Malviya had also tweeted earlier: “Chun chun ke Hinduo ke ghar ko jalaya gaya (Hindu households were targeted and burnt). Is this protest against CAA or a war against Hindus?”

Malviya was not the only one. BJP leader Kapil Mishra, who has been accused of instigating violence in Delhi, also took to Twitter and accused AAP councillor Tahir Hussain for the murder of Intelligence Bureau official Ankit Sharma.


Also read: The Delhi pogrom 2020 is Amit Shah’s answer to an election defeat


Support for Kapil Mishra

Many other BJP leaders have termed the Delhi violence as “planned riots”, saying it was a “conspiracy” at a time when US President Donald Trump was visiting India. Some even justified the provocative speeches made by Mishra.

Mishra had given a three-day ultimatum to the Delhi Police to clear streets in Jaffrabad and Chand Bagh, where protests were going on against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. He even said that if the police failed to respond, “we will not even listen to you if the roads are not vacated”.

Mishra also tweeted Tuesday, saying “Jaffrabad has been cleared and there won’t be another Shaheen Bagh in Delhi”. But he later deleted the tweet.

Kapil Mishra's deleted tweet
Kapil Mishra’s deleted tweet

BJP’s general secretary (organisation), B.L. Santhosh, posted a similar message at around 9 pm Tuesday, albeit in more incendiary language: “Jaffrabad Metro protest area totally cleared. The game starts now. Rioters need to be taught a lesson or two of Indian laws. #PlannedDelhiRiots.”

BL Santhosh's deleted tweet
B.L. Santhosh’s deleted tweet

He later deleted the tweet and re-posted it without “the game starts now”.

Santhosh had earlier questioned the AAP government’s “subdued reactions”, and asked in a tweet if it was “because of one way polling in selected booths & AAPs total victory in minority dominated constituencies…?” He added: “Nation will never forgive them.”

Delhi BJP chief and North-East Delhi MP Manoj Tiwari and East Delhi MP Gautam Gambhir both asked political parties to exercise restraint and not make inflammatory speeches. But Delhi BJP spokesperson Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga retweeted a post that said that when BJP MP Parvesh Verma had cautioned Delhiites about Shaheen Bagh protesters, no one had paid heed. “Dekha na, ghuss aaye tumhare gharo mein. Ab kya karoge? Kaun si dharmnnirpekshta bachane aayegi, (Look, they’ve entered your homes. Now what will you do? Which secularism will come to save you?)” the tweet stated.

The post Tajinder Bagga retweeted
The post Tajinder Bagga retweeted

Bagga also responded to a tweet accusing Mishra of inciting violence which led to loss of lives, saying: “I stand with Kapil Mishta, don’t try to divide us.”

Mishra also received support from Rohini MLA Vijender Gupta. “Some media persons and intellectuals are saying that Kapil Mishra is responsible for Delhi violence. But they remain mum on statements by Waris Pathan. They don’t want to stop violence but want to run their own business while Delhi burns,” Gupta had tweeted Tuesday.

Sambit Patra, BJP’s national spokesperson, also posted a video showing Shahrukh, an accused in the violence, and asking “Headmaster’s Son??”

Patra was probably making an oblique reference to Burhan Wani, the slain Hizbul Mujahideen commander who was the son of a school headmaster.


Also read: Delhi riots neither designed by Modi govt, nor Islamic conspiracy. It’s far more dangerous


 

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