Kolkata: Expressing his disapproval to the remarks made earlier by Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Wednesday said no Sikh should be called “anti-national” or “Khalistani”.
“No Sardar (Sikh) should be called anti-national or Khalistani. You can't generalize on the basis of some misguided people,” he said, ANI reported.
The bureaucrat-turned politician was in Kolkata for a door-to-door campaign in support of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Priyanka Tibrewal, who will lock horns with West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo Mamata Banerjee in the upcoming Bhabanipur by-poll to be held on September 30.
Earlier on Tuesday, Mufti had accused the ruling dispensation of labelling those opposed to the BJP as anti-nationals and Khalistani.
Mufti, who has been highly critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government over the last few days, said “those in Delhi are using Jammu and Kashmir as a laboratory and are experimenting here”.
“The leaders like (Jawaharlal) Nehru, (Atal Bihari) Vajpayee had a vision for J&K but this government creates a divide between the Hindu and Muslims. Sardars are now Khalistani, we are Pakistani, only the BJP is Hindustani,” she added.
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The former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister alleged the “delimitation exercise is being done haphazardly”.
Asserting the people of Jammu and Kashmir have lost their hope with the BJP government, which abrogated Article 370, Mufti had earlier said the Muslim majority state would have never joined India if the saffron party would have been at the helm during partition.