New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party leader and Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has said that a “riot-like situation” has developed in the state because Aurangzeb’s “auladein (progenies)” have taken birth here.
“I can easily see that all these leaders are talking the same language. People of a particular community are helping them and glorifying Aurangzeb. The riot-like situation is taking place in some areas only because people of a particular community are glorifying Aurangzeb,” Fadnavis, who is also the state home minister, said. He was referring two recent incidents – some people displaying photos of 17th-century Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in a procession in Ahmednagar and tension in Kolhapur city on Wednesday over the alleged use of Tipu Sultan’s image by some people on social media.
“Some politicians have been saying that there could be a riot-like situation in the state. Responding to the comments of these leaders, youths of a particular community showcased pictures of Aurangzeb. They also glorified Aurangzeb and Tipu Sultan. It cannot be a mere coincidence,” he told reporters in Navi Mumbai.
He later brought the same matter up in Nagpur, saying, “Displaying Aurangzeb’s photos and keeping a mobile status (on Tipu Sultan); this is creating tension in society. We will find the real culprits who are deliberately disturbing the law and order and defaming the state.”
There was a “definite design” behind such posters and opposition leaders saying there was a riot-like situation, Fadnavis continued. “It is the state government’s responsibility to maintain law and order in the state. I appeal to the citizens to maintain peace and calm. Police probe is underway and action will be taken against those found guilty,” he said.
Fadnavis’s comments on opposition leaders came after Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar had claimed, according to PTI, “The rulers are responsible to establish law and order in the state. If the ruling parties and their people come out on roads and create a rift between two religions, then it is not a good sign.”
The police have registered a case against four people for allegedly carrying posters of Aurangzeb during a procession on Sunday. Videos of the procession went viral on social media.
Internet has been suspended for two days in Kolhapur following protests at Shivaji Chowk on Wednesday over the social media statuses related to Tipu Sultan. Prohibitory orders are in place till June 19, Hindustan Times reported.