Mayawati slams Amit Shah's remarks against Azamgarh

Lucknow: Lashing out at Narendra Modi's close aide Amit Shah for his controversial remarks against Azamgarh, BSP supremo Mayawati said Gujarat can be termed as a "base of communalism" by the same parameter and demanded that the Election Commission ban his entry in Uttar Pradesh.

Mayawati said on Monday that if Shah's parameter was considered to be right, there was nothing wrong if Gujarat was called as the "centre of communalism".

Flaying Shah's statement, the BSP leader told reporters that, "Such a statement violating mode code of conduct could vitiate law and order in Azamgarh and eastern UP. Gujarat can also be termed as a base of communalism and crime. I demand EC again ban Shah in Uttar Pradesh".

The BSP leader also demanded that the EC initiates action against SP leader Abu Asim Azmi for this "DNA remark" at a meeting recently.

"As far as Shah's remarks are concerned I will like to say that if some persons of Azamgarh district have done anything wrong whether Hindu or Muslim, it does not mean that the people of the entire society are terrorists," Mayawati said, while dubbing BJP candidate Ramakant Yadav as the "biggest terrorist" of Azamgarh district.

"I want to say that such type of statement can disturb law and order situation in Azamgarh and eastern UP. I demand EC that should take action against Shah and a complete ban should be imposed on his entry in UP," she said.

Shah had on Sunday landed in a controversy by dubbing Azamgarh as the "base of terrorists", drawing sharp reaction from ruling SP, which demanded that Election Commission should take cognisance immediately and act against him.

Mayawati also demanded that the EC should make adequate arrangement of central forces for remaining phases of elections in UP and the state police should be kept away from the process.

"Special arrangement should be made in Azamgarh. I am saying this because so far four phases of election had been held in UP and management of the EC was not satisfactory. The shortcomings should not be repeated in remaining phases," she said.

Mayawati cautioned the partymen that opposition parties, specially SP, could distort old events about her party, herself and Kanshiram and present the same before Muslims and upper caste.

"They can make effort to mislead the people specially Muslims, by distributing edited CDs or films of old meetings or conversation between me and Kanshiram with BJP leaders when we formed the government in alliance with the saffron brigade for sometime. You have to be careful from this," she said.

The BSP supremo said that Muslims should remain cautious from SP.

"The party which contested election in alliance with Kalyan Singh, who destroyed disputed structure, and helped him to reach Lok Sabha, can never be a well wishers of Muslims," she said.

Regarding disputed site at Ayodhya, Mayawati said that the matter was pending in the court and like BSP other parties should wait for its decision.

"Making any type of comment by any political party, would not be right. It would not be in the national interest," she said.

"I am saying this as through media I have come to know that stalwarts of two political parties will address election meetings in Faizabad. The stalwarts of SP and BJP, who are reaching Faizabad, you all know they do not have much knowledge of history. In Faizabad they should not say anything which may lead to communal tension in the country," she added.

Mayawati appealed the two leaders to avoid making any comment with reference to the disputed site at Ayodhya. "It is my appeal to the two leaders that they should not make any comment on the issue at the time of election as it won't be right. If they make any comment which create communal tension in the country and UP, then Hindu and Muslims will never forgive them," she said.