The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday announced that an activist who took part in the Shaheen Bagh protest, has now joined the saffron party. The BJP celebrated the entrance of Shahzad Ali who claimed to have sat in 101-day-long protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act, National Register of Citizens and National Population Register (CAA, NRC and NPR). While joining the party, the activist said that his move was to prove that the BJP was not an enemy of the Muslim community. He also informed that he would sit with the BJP leaders over their CAA concerns.
However, Shaheen Bagh protest organisers denied Ali’s participation in their struggle and said that he was not even a resident of the area. “Thousands came out to sit with us in our protest. Millions were part of the struggle but couldn’t make it here. Shahzad Ali must have been one of those who sat with us but he certainly wasn’t an organiser or integral part of our movement. We’ve found out that he’s actually a resident of Jasola and lives in a rented accommodation there,” said Qasim, one of the organisers of the Shaheen Bagh protest. He also said that Ali didn’t vote from their constituency and they were also trying to find out whether he was a Delhi resident or not.
Meanwhile, Delhi BJP chief Adesh Gupta and party’s leader Shyam Jaju also talked about how this move would bring the Muslim community to the mainstream. “Today hundreds of Muslim brothers have joined the party after realising that there is no discrimination with Muslims and we want to bring them into the mainstream of development. I would like to congratulate all those women who have joined the party after observing the steps Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken in the triple talaq matter,” said Gupta.
While defending CAA, NPR and NRC, Jaju reiterated his party’s stand and said that no Indian would lose his or her place in the country. “When there was talk about CAA, some political parties tried to mislead Muslims but now every Muslim of the country knows that there is no need to prove anything. Nobody will be ripped off their right of vote and nationality. After realising that they will get justice only through this party, a huge number of Muslims who were present in the protest at Shaheen Bagh have joined the party today,” he said.