NEW DELHI: Newly elected Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from East Delhi Gautam Gambhir stands firm with his statement in a case of alleged assault of a Muslim man in Gurugram.
Gambhir told The Indian Express that “trolls and critics are not a problem” and he will “continue to live in black and white”, and that “it is easier to say the truth rather than hide behind the froth of falsehood”.
Gambhir was at the receiving end of his own party sympathisers after he tweeted against an alleged ill-treatment meted out to a Muslim man in Gurugram who was asked to remove his skull cap.
Gambhir, who made an impressive debut in Parliament by winning the Lok Sabha elections, termed the incident as deplorable. The tweet generated over 4,500 comments
“In Gurugram Muslim man told to remove skullcap, chant Jai Shri Ram… It is deplorable. Exemplary action needed by Gurugram authorities…” Gambhir earlier tweeted.
Gambhir had condemned the attack on the Muslim man in the Haryana city and demanded exemplary action against the culprits.
Speaking to The Indian Express, Gambhir said: “Having been a cricketer, criticism is not new for me. I am used to it. So trollers and critics are not a problem. Having played sports which is governed by definite, I will continue to live in black and a white. Somehow have never liked greys, in fact you won’t find a grey in my wardrobe too. It is easier to say the truth rather than hide behind the froth of falsehood.” “By inclusiveness, I mean a growth that takes everyone along. Like our PM, Mr Modi said, ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas and Sabka Vishwas’. How will you win the trust of everyone if they don’t feel safe? And that too just for practising one’s preferred religion. And like I also said, my views are not restricted to Gurgaon incident but it is a blanket point of view on lynchings, hatred and any kind of oppression.”
A Muslim man was allegedly assaulted for wearing a traditional skull cap while he was returning after offering prayers at a mosque in Sadar Bazaar area in Gurugram on Saturday.
Mohammad Barkat Alam, hailing from Bihar, claimed that he was also asked to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ by five to six men who cornered him and hurled abuses.
He alleged that the men abused him saying nobody was allowed to wear a skull cap in the area and one of them slapped him.
The Gurugram Police has registered a case. The police has also taken the CCTV footage to identify the culprits. No one has been arrested yet.
With agency inputs