Asaduddin Owaisi receives online threats over Kashmir

Suresh Dharur

Tribune News Service

Hyderabad, June 20

Hyderabad MP and president of All India Majlis Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) Asaduddin Owaisi has received online threats after he took a strong stand against a recent report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on Kashmir.

Owaisi, a three-time MP, rejected the UN report on the alleged human rights violations in the Kashmir Valley, saying the world body has no right to interfere in the internal matters of India. The MP, a strong critic of the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, unequivocally backed the government on the matter.

After he articulated his views on Twitter, Owaisi received threats from the same social media accounts that had reportedly issued death threats to the veteran Kashmiri journalist and editor of ‘Rising Kashmir’ Shujaat Bhukari who was shot dead in Srinagar recently.

Syed Abdul Kashaf, the social media head of AIMIM, said that the matter had been brought to the notice of the cyber crime cell of the Hyderabad Police and Twitter India.

Following the complaint, Twitter India has suspended two of the accounts that were highlighted.

”I will oppose Modi till my last breath, but when it comes to the country’s sovereignty, we support the government, irrespective of the party in power,” Owaisi said.

Some of the social media users targeted the MP for backing the Indian government on Kashmir and accused him of ‘betrayal.

An independent MLA from Kashmir Engineer Rashid accused Owaisi of distorting the facts and misleading the country on the ground situation in the Kashmir Valley.

”Whatever Owaisi has said on Kashmir dispute and UNHRC report is far from reality, misleading and distortion of facts. Owaisi has every right to praise India and must be loyal to his country but saying that the Muslims of India stand with rest of the country on the Kashmir issue is laughable and has no logic,” he said in a statement.

”Owaisi calling the report a propaganda and rejecting the solid evidences given by UNHRC exposing grave human rights violations and massacres of Kashmiris has proved that the political class of rest of India is adamant to mislead the world and ensure that Kashmiris are made to surrender. By criticising UNHRC and adding salt to the injuries of Kashmiris, Owaisi and like-minded leaders can never win sympathy of the majority community in India as it is not Kashmiris but the Indian society which is getting radicalised day by day,” the legislator said.