Senior journalist Pushpendra Kulshreshtha has alleged that controversial Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan was involved in attacking the Indian Army during the 1965 Indo-Pak war. He alleged that Khan was involved in pelting stones at the Army personnel and was also involved in digging up roads to stall the troops’ movement.
Speaking at an event in the Amity Law School, Lucknow, Pushpendra Kulshreshtha made the revelations about the Samajwadi Party leader. Azam Khan is the founder member of the Samajwadi Party. He has won the constituency seats 9 times from Rampur. He is the senior MLA from Rampur.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZ2velRMY_U&feature=youtu.be
The speech by the journalist mentions that Azam Khan in his college days had planned to stop the army from moving forward. He had collected a total of 50 students who threw stones on the Indian Army. The group also dug out roads to prevent the army and increase its difficulties in marching ahead. He said that when the Indian Army was moving from the Rampur area to join the battalion at the border, but Azam Khan and the group attacked them. Both Kulshreshtha and Azam Khan are alumni of Aligarh Muslim University.
The attack was to hinder the movement of the army, however, Azam Khan was caught and beaten up and was advised to leave the city. The SP leader then left the city for Aligarh where he enrolled himself in the Aligarh Muslim University. It was from here that Azam Khan ventured into politics.
Pushpendra Kulshreshtha said (in reference to his co-speaker) that some people regret not getting the opportunity to defend the country in 1971 war, while others caused hindrances to the Army in 1965, like Azam Khan. He also mentioned about Bose and Savarkar, that the new generation is unaware or has very little knowledge about what these heroes have done for the nation. He showed concern that history about brave souls has been kept hidden from the new generation. He said that it is the misery of the older times that truth was subdued. The journalist said that some characters have been portrayed in a different and incorrect way. He said that it is necessary that each aspect is presented, in the way it is, without any twist or turns.
Last year, Azam Khan had made anti-army remarks, which were highly condemned. A complaint had been filed by Akash Saxena, son of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader under Sections 153A and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Indian Penal Code. The Samajwadi Party leader furthermore accused the Indian Army of indulging in rape at the border area. Azam Khan has also been alleged in three more cases apart from the case filed by BJP leader for speaking ill of the Indian Army.
