Muslim clerics in UP laud Modi's statement

Muslim religious leaders in Uttar Pradesh Saturday lauded the statement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, terming Indian Muslims as people who would live for the nation and if the need arises, die for it.

Reacting to the statement given in an interview to a TV channel, Maulana Kalb-e-Jawwad, imam of the Asifi mosque, said Muslims should breathe easy now since the prime minister has put their patriotism in the right perspective.

"Ever since Modi was elected prime minister, various political forces were trying to cow them down by creating a bogey of fear," he said.

Maulana Fazal-ul-Rehman, the imam of the Teeli Waali mosque, said there was no reason to doubt what the prime minister said.

"While we welcome Modi's statement, we will also urge him to rein in the likes of Sakshi Maharaj and Adityanath in his party who are spewing venom against the minority community," he said.

Maulana Khalid Rashid Farangi Mahali, imam of the Eishbagh Eidgah, said Muslims in India were always full of love for the country and would always be loyal and patriotic to India.

He also sought immediate intervention of the prime minister in thwarting attempts of some Bharatiya Janata Party leaders to taint Muslims.

Maulana Naseem Akhtar Shah Qaiser, a faculty member at the Darul Uloom seminary in Deoband, said Modi's statement was "good and welcoming".