Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Uttar Pradesh cabinet minister Swami Prasad Maurya, on Tuesday, slammed the party’s Aligarh MP, Satish Gautam, for questioning the Aligarh Muslim University for displaying a photograph of Pakistan founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah in the institute, reported Times of India.
Calling Jinnah a ‘mahapurush’ who contributed for India before Pakistan was formed, Maurya said that “it is shameful for anyone to point a finger on great leaders who contributed towards the formation of the country.”
Gautam had earlier written a letter to AMU Vice-Chancellor Tariq Mansoor seeking an explanation for displaying Jinnah’s photo. “What is the compulsion of putting his picture,” he had asked.
Gautam said though he didn’t know where the photo was displayed, the question was why it was there at all because, after India’s Partition, there was no justification for displaying the photo of Pakistan’s founder.