UP Minister Calls For A Ban On Burqas, Says It Allows Terrorists To Hide In Plain Sight. What Is He On About?
If I try to think about it, and really hard that too, I don’t think I’ll be able to recall even one time when the ministers and politicians in power, have ever made sense in their speeches, campaigns or during interviews even when they have been tutored. Always twisting around the facts, sometimes even fabricating them, You seldom come across a politician who makes sense – most will willingly push the limits of your belief and patience, to see how much of a leeway you will allow them before you look at them all disgruntled. Today is one of those times, for yet again, another politician, this time the UP minister, Raghuraj Singh has come forward to make statements that are both controversial and baseless.
Addressing the many protests and the kind of political instability our country is dealing with right now, many people have come up to share their two cents on the matter, and some have even used it as the perfect opportunity to further their own political agendas, which is kind of expected. We say this after Raghuraj Singh, a UP minister demanded a ban on burqas worn by Muslim women, but not for the obvious reasons that it perhaps allows for discrimination, but because he thinks it is enabling terrorists to hide in plain sight and plot against us.
He said that burqas or hijabs, essentially a religious covering for women in Islam, are giving a way to terrorists to conceal their identities. He in fact made the statement, “Wearing burqa is a culture in Arabian countries. Our neighbouring country Srilanka banned it last year after series of blasts. It should also be banned in India because the burqas were being used by the terrorists to conceal their identity.”
Also Read : The All India Muslim Personal Law Board Says Women Were Never Prohibited From Entering Mosques. Is This A Step Forward?
And honestly, we didn’t know whether to be more disappointed or surprised at his lack of reasoning or his own flawed logic. Think about it, how are burqas aiding terrorists hide their identity? It’s not like they have it written on their faces, because surely, we would have been able to stop an Ajmal Kasab then. And history is witness, that terrorists have infiltrated in public spaces, in plain sight, in civilian attires, with or without burqas and asking for a ban on a religious statement such as this isn’t just disrespectful, but to a very large extent, unacceptable.
BJP leader demands ban on burqa, calls it threat to national security | Indiablooms – First Portal on Digital News Management https://t.co/Xnxsdrx92D #Burqaban, #BJP, #UttarPradesh
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Yes, there are a lot of countries out there, especially spread across Europe that ban the use of burqas and face veils, but that is to strictly avoid getting into gender discrimination controversies, and that we still understand. Which is why, had he reasoned out his concern, expressing that this skews the equality equation, the feminist in us would’ve paid heed, listened and even understood. But making statements blatantly disrespecting Islam, their culture, their beliefs and equating it with terrorism reeks of islamophobia and an attempt to create divide in the narrative here, that is already against muslims right now.
The other member from the party however, upon realising the catastrophic consequences of his speech, was quick to jump to the defense of their own party. UP BJP spokesperson Dr Chandramohan said ” Our party believes in ‘sabka saath sabka vikas‘ and such controversial remarks against women can never be tolerated. The BJP is committed to empower and respect every citizen. Anyone working against the ideology of the party will have to face action.”
He has been given a time of seven days to get back with a word that explains the statement he made and with what intention. Guess, you can’t really escape the ramifications of being stupid in the times when people are smarter, sharper and woke as ever.
