Atishi rejects BJP’s charges

Former Delhi Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, Atishi, on Tuesday rejected allegations that she had insulted Sikh Gurus, calling the claims “completely false and baseless” and accused the BJP of politicising the issue.

Addressing the media, the AAP leader said she and her family hold deep faith and respect for Guru Tegh Bahadur and all Sikh Gurus.

She claimed that her family has a long-standing tradition of devotion to Sikh values and service to society, and stressed that the BJP had no moral right to question her respect for Sikh traditions.

Launching a scathing attack on BJP minister Kapil Mishra, Atishi accused him of spreading lies for political benefit. “Mishra has a history of making false allegations and reminded people that he had earlier apologised in court after admitting to lying in a case involving AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal,” she added. Referring to a recent FIR registered in Jalandhar and court directions against Mishra, Atishi said the controversy was created deliberately to divert attention from real issues like pollution. She alleged that Mishra edited a video and dragged the names of Sikh Gurus into politics for “petty gains”. The LoP also recalled the farmers’ movement, accusing the BJP leaders of branding Sikh protesters as “Khalistanis”. She named several BJP leaders, including Kangana Ranaut, Nitin Patel and Meenakshi Lekhi, and said they used offensive language against Sikh farmers. She claimed that such actions exposed the BJP’s politics of insult and provocation and added that attempts to malign her or hurt religious sentiments would fail, as people can see through what she described as repeated lies and divisive tactics.