MUMBAI: A senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Borivali from Mumbai Gopal Shetty has embarrassed the party by targeting Christians and calling them ‘angrez’.
Shetty made a remark while addressing a gathering during the Eid-E-Milad organized by the Shia Kabrastan Committee at Malvani in Malad in Mumbai on Sunday. Shetty sais that, it was only the Hindus and the Muslims who played a role in India’s freedom struggle and not the Christians.
Dr.Massey the founder of Christian Media Association said, I strongly condemn the statements made by Gopal Shetty BJP MP from North Mumbai against the Christian Community. He has accused the community which is known for peace in the world. He said Prime Minister Mr. Narander Modi has to update his party leader with the history of India or give up the slogan taken by him, “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas”. I would like to ask BJP is following Britisher’s policy “Divide and Rule” in the name of racism? Indian Christian played a volumetric role for India’s freedom like Madhu Sunder Das of Orissa, N Subramanium, Pandita Ramabai Saraswati, Kali Chandran Banerjee Brahmabandhab Upadhyay (George Thomas), J.C.Kumarappa (original name John Jesudason Cornelius, Paul Ramasamy T.M. Varghese, A.J. John, Anne Mascarenes and A k kamma Cherian, Philoppose Elanjikkal John, Joachim Alva etc.
I really did not understand the statement of Ashish Shelar the Mumbai BJP president and MLA Bandra (W) Mumbai, “Shetty had been asked to withdraw the statement and BJP doesn’t support such statements, nor is it the BJP’s official position” But “He obviously didn’t mean what he said”?
I know since that was a local Muslim event, in an area (Malwani) which has been traditionally a Congress stronghold, with Congress MLA Aslam Shaikh having a very strong grip over the area, which consists of a majority of Muslims, Shetty went into overdrive to woo the Muslim community. But he forgot one important aspect – the Catholic community consisting of the original inhabitants or sons of the soil or East Indians are equally prominent in Malad and Malwani (Orlem, Aksa, Madh, and Gorai).
The community is quite an indignation for Shetty statement and two residents of Orlem in Malad, Jerad Lobo, and Mavis Fernandes, have submitted a complaint against Shetty at Malvani Police Station. The two said the complaint should be registered under the Indian Penal Code sections 153(a) for promoting enmity between communities and 504 for breach of peace.
The Watchdog Foundation – a forum agitating for the rights of the local Christian (and Catholic) community has written to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in this regard.
Officers from Malvani Police Station said a complaint will be registered only after a thorough probe, even as the Congress wasted no time on latching onto Shetty’s comments. “The Christian community may be small in number but its contribution in nation-building has been immense. It is unfortunate that a Member of Parliament is making such a discriminatory and provocative comment,” said Congress MLA Aslam Shaikh. He also added Shetty is not aware of history or is purposely trying to create discord among members of one community with such communally sensitive utterances.
This is not the first time Shetty is under fire for his comments. In March this year, he introduced the private member’s Bill in the Lok Sabha, seeking to raise the age of marriage for women from 18 to 21 if she is marrying without her parent’s consent.
“Boys and girls fall in love at 15 and 16, get married at the age of 18 as soon as they become majors, against the wishes of their parents. At this age, they still don’t understand the difference between infatuation and love. Many of these early age marriages later turn sour and result in divorce and other complications. To avoid this social menace, I introduced the Bill,” Shetty had told Mirror.
Feb 2018 in an event at Borivali he said in his firing line there is a ‘fashion to commit suicide‘ a trend is on. If Maharashtra government is giving Rs 5 lakh, another government is giving Rs 7 lakh, Rs 8 lakh. There is a competition going on to give money to farmers,” “All farmer suicides are not only because of hunger and unemployment.
The Bharat Citizens Action Forum (BCAF), a forum for the promotion of inter-religious harmony and justice, said they have sent a legal notice to Shetty – who is currently in Delhi for the Parliament session, demanding an unconditional apology. In case he (Shetty) does not tender an unconditional apology within two days, we will approach the appropriate court in this regard,” Firoz Khan, general secretary of the BCAF told IndiaScoops.com.
