Controversial Samajwadi Party Maharashtra Chief Abu Azmi has been suspended from the Maharashtra Assembly days after he eulogised Mughal tyrant Aurangzeb and peddled distorting history. He has been suspended from the ongoing state Budget Session, and as per reports, he will remain suspended from the House until the entire Session concludes on March 26.
A day earlier, State minister Chandrakant Patil had introduced the motion to suspend Abu Azmi from the House. It was argued by the treasury bench that praising Aurangzeb was an insult to Maratha king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and his son Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj. Subsequently, the motion to suspend the Samajwadi leader was approved through a voice vote.
An Aurangzeb fanboy, Azmi had brazenly claimed that during the reign of the Mughal tyrant, India’s borders extended to Afghanistan and Burma (Myanmar) and India became a “golden sparrow”.
“Our GDP accounted for 24 per cent (of the world GDP) and India was called a golden sparrow (during his regime),” Azmi had said.
Meanwhile, after facing mounting pressure for distorting History, the Aurangzeb fanboy had apologized for his contentious remarks praising Aurangzeb. While playing victim card, he claimed that his words had been misinterpreted. Azmi claimed that he only reiterated what historians and writers have documented about the Mughal tyrant and maintained that his statement was not intended to be against Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj or Sambhaji Maharaj.
“My words have been twisted. I have said what historians and writers have said about Aurangzeb Rahmatullah Alaih. I have not made any derogatory comment about Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Sambhaji Maharaj, or any other great men. However, if anyone has been hurt by my statement, then I take back my words, my statement,” Azmi had stated in a video posted on X.
Following the remarks, an FIR was registered against Azmi based on a complaint filed by Lok Sabha MP Naresh Mhaske, alleging that his comments were intended to hurt religious sentiments. Initially filed in Naupada Police Station, Thane, the case was later transferred to Marine Drive police station in Mumbai under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, according to police officials.