My statement on terrorism and religion deliberately misinterpreted: Prithviraj Chavan
Chavan was speaking at a press conference after the Shiv Sena earlier in the day protested against his comments after the seven accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case were acquitted by a Mumbai court two days ago.
Karad, Aug 2 (PTI) Senior Congress leader and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on Saturday said his recent remark that 'terrorism has no caste, religion or colour' was deliberately misinterpreted for political gain.
His statement was distorted to divert attention from core issues and create a political controversy, Chavan said. 'My words were twisted. I had said terrorism knows no religion, yet it was used to play politics,' he added.
Chavan also questioned the government's failure to bring the culprits of the 2008 Malegaon blast to justice, stating, 'This was a serious terror act. Innocent lives were lost. If there is concrete evidence, punishment should be delivered. If not, why is the system failing to deliver justice?' The case, initially probed by the Anti-Terrorism Squad of Maharashtra Police, was later transferred to the National Investigation Agency, he said. 'Despite years of investigation, the real perpetrators remain unidentified. There is a need to investigate whether political pressure influenced the probe,' he said.
Criticising the BJP-led state government, Chavan said, 'Industrial investment is declining in Maharashtra. In Beed, an extortion-related murder occurred over failure to pay Rs 2 crore. Even in Pune, industries are facing extortion threats.' He further claimed that extortion activities were flourishing under political patronage. 'Only the Chief Minister and Deputy CM can effectively act against such elements. No gangster can operate fearlessly without political backing,' he said.
In his reaction to the judgement in the Malegaon blast case on Thursday, Chavan had said he was against the use of the term 'saffron terror' as saffron is the colour of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's flag and Warkari sect.
While the BJP and several right-wing outfits latched on to the verdict to slam the Congress for allegedly coining the term 'bhagwa aatankwad' or saffron terror, Chavan had asserted that 'a terrorist who kills innocent persons has no religion'.
On the use of the 'Hindu terror' term with regard to the Malegaon blast and the ensuing trial, Chavan had asked which religion the accused belonged to.
'The first act of terror was the murder of Mahatma Gandhi. Which religion did (the Mahatma's assassin) Nathuram Godse belong to,' the senior Congress leader had questioned. PTI MR KRK
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
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