Bareilly: All India Muslim Jamaat National President Maulana Mufti Shahabuddin Razvi Bareilvi on Wednesday called out New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani over his remarks concerning an upcoming RSS event in the city, saying that while people may have differing opinions, boycotting somebody’s personal programme “is not right from a moral perspective”.
Mamdani had earlier said he did not support the rally but was unsure whether the city had jurisdiction to cancel a private event.
Speaking to IANS, Maulana Shahabuddin said: “Since it is a personal programme of (RSS chief) Dr. (Mohan) Bhagwat, there is no meaning to this boycott. Unnecessarily boycotting someone, a programme or attempting to boycott someone’s event is not right from a moral perspective, and neither does the law support it.”
He reiterated that any kind of personal programme, even if it is of the RSS, should not be opposed.
“Every person has his or her own viewpoint, according to which they plan and execute their work. So, I don’t think New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani should have opposed (Bhagwat’s event),” he added.
Further, Maulana Shahabuddin also spoke about the controversy that erupted after the Malegaon Deputy Mayor put up a picture of Tipu Sultan in his office.
Maintaining that Malegaon, situated in Maharashtra, “is a city of Urdu language, culture and civilised way of life”, he underlined: “There is only one city in the whole of India, Malegaon, where you will find signboards in Urdu on the roads, boards in Urdu at people’s shops, and names written in Urdu at police posts and intersections.”
“You will also find the names of roads, lanes, and localities written in Urdu. Therefore, it is the only city in the whole of India that has kept Urdu alive. So, if they have put up a picture of Tipu Sultan, who fought against the British in India, it is not a crime,” he asserted.
“They have done a very good and brave work,” he said while congratulating Malegaon’s Municipal Corporation for the same.
Moreover, the Muslim cleric said that putting up Tipu Sultan’s picture in the city is a “slap on the face of those who intend to weaken India and destroy the country’s unity and integrity”.
(IANS)
