By Shibimol KG
In Short
- Complaint filed against PC George by Muslim Youth League
- BJP leader apologised after remarks sparked outrage
- BJP accuses Kerala government of political vendetta
A case was registered against Kerala BJP leader PC Gorge for allegedly making hate speech against the Muslim community during a TV debate earlier this week.
Police in Kerala’s Kottayam district have initiated action against the BJP leader following a complaint lodged by the Muslim Youth League Municipal Committee. The complaint alleges that George made communal remarks against Muslims during a televised discussion.
In his controversial statement, George reportedly said: “I am sitting in Erattupetta and saying this. Out of the 40,000 population here, 38,600 are Muslims. There are no such communal forces without any conscience like you anywhere in this world. Do you have conscience? Do you have a soft approach towards people from other religious groups? You should learn the diversity we show. Are we saying that any Muslims should be killed? If you are a Muslim, then you are communal. It’s become like that. You don’t want India but Pakistan. Go to Pakistan”.
The remarks sparked widespread criticism, prompting George to issue an apology on social media. In a Facebook post, he wrote: “I unconditionally retract my reply that all Muslims in India are terrorists, and I apologise to all my Muslim brothers and sisters who love this country who were hurt by it. But I clearly know that there is a small percentage of people among them who have anti-national extremist thoughts. I will always strongly oppose them and all those who silently support them”.
This story was originally published in indiatoday.in. Read the full story here.