BJP asks SP to expel Farooqi over Bhatkal remarks

BJP today asked Samajwadi Party to expel its leader Kamaal Farooqi for his controversial remarks over the arrest of Indian Mujahideen co-founder Yasin Bhatkal.
Alleging that the ruling party in Uttar Pradesh had crossed all limits in pursuit of its policy to appease minorities, BJP asked it to issue a rejection of Farooqi's statement, failing which it would take it that the party agreed with the leader's views.
"SP should either immediately expel Farooqi or deny his statement, else it would be accepted that the party supports Farooqi on the issue of Bhatkal's arrest," state BJP spokesman, Dr Manoj Misra, said in a statement today.

Responding to the arrest of the 30-year-old accused, who is wanted in several blast cases, Farooqui had yesterday said, "Is this arrest based on crime or religion?"
"If he is a terrorist, then he should not be spared but if he has been arrested just because he is a Muslim, then caution should be exercised as we don't want to send a wrong message to the entire community that we are trying to malign the it's image without a thorough investigation," he had said.
Describing Farooqi's statement as communally divisive, Misra said SP leaders had crossed all limits in their love for votes. He alleged that they were turning into patrons of terrorists.

"It is due to this that a section of society feels that they can do anything, which has resulted in some riots in the state in the recent past," he added.