Jinnah Row: Mani Shankar Aiyar appreciates Jinnah, draws flak from Amit Shah

Former Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar used the Urdu phrase Quaid-e-Azam for Jinnah.

Former Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar. (Photo: PTI/File)

New Delhi: Former Congress minister Mani Shankar Aiyar has again sparked a controversy by lauding Muhammad Ali Jinnah, at a time when top political leaders of both BJP and Congress are busy clearing their stand on the founder of Pakistan. Aiyar used the Urdu phrase Quaid-e-Azam for Jinnah. Congress leader Nadeem Javed said while talking to ABP News that Mani Shankar Aiyar is no longer a member of Congress party. However BJP Chief Amit Shah took a jibe at Aiyar’s remark on Twitter. Shah wrote on Twitter that Congress and Pakistan have telepathic connection. He wrote: “Congress and Pakistan have amazing telepathy. Yesterday Pakistan Government remembered Tipu Sultan, whose Jayanti Congress marks with fanfare and today Mr. Mani Shankar Aiyar admires Jinnah. Be it Gujarat or Karnataka polls, I fail to understand why Congress involves Pakistan!”

Congress and Pakistan have amazing telepathy.

Yesterday Pakistan Government remembered Tipu Sultan, whose Jayanti Congress marks with fanfare and today Mr. Mani Shankar Aiyar admires Jinnah. Be it Gujarat or Karnataka polls, I fail to understand why Congress involves Pakistan! pic.twitter.com/isH9GmgET2 — Amit Shah (@AmitShah) May 5, 2018

In the following tweet he accused Congress of involving foreign nations in India’s domestic politics. He wrote: “During Gujarat elections we saw how dinner meetings with topmost Pakistan officials were held to defeat BJP and now mutual love for Tipu Sultan and Jinnah. I appeal to Congress not to involve foreign nations in our domestic politics. Let’s keep the discourse civil and positive.”

During Gujarat elections we saw how dinner meetings with topmost Pakistan officials were held to defeat BJP and now mutual love for Tipu Sultan and Jinnah.

I appeal to Congress not to involve foreign nations in our domestic politics. Let’s keep the discourse civil and positive. — Amit Shah (@AmitShah) May 5, 2018

BJP spokesperson Sudanshu Trivedi also said on Saturday  that those who are standing for Pakistan founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah also stood for terrorists like Afzal Guru. AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi  too cleared his stand. He said: “We told Jinnah to get out, we are Indian by birth and Indian by choice. We never accepted Jinnah's two nation theory.” Jinnah is in headlines as some groups have protested against the portrait of Pakistan's founder at the office of Aligarh Muslim University student union. The matter became a controversy after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s Aligarh MP Satish Gautam questioned the portrait's presence in the AMU student union office.