Video tweeted by BJP is from after conclusion of discussion on 350th ‘Shaheedi Diwas’ of Guru Tegh Bahadur & has been deliberately misrepresented: Atishi
For generations, eldest son in my family has embraced Sikh faith to protect society; I can give my life, but I cannot tolerate any insult to Guru Sahib: Atishi
NEW DELHI:
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) tore into the BJP for deliberately distorting Leader of Opposition (LoP) Atishi’s remarks to manufacture a controversy around Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji and insult the revered Guru, calling it a calculated diversion to escape mounting embarrassment over Chief Minister Rekha Gupta’s statements in the Assembly.
Senior AAP leaders, including Punjab Prabhari Manish Sisodia, MP Sanjay Singh, LoP Atishi AAP Delhi State President Saurabh Bharadwaj, Gujarat Prabhari Gopal Rai said the BJP, is anti-Sikh, had misused Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji’s name by circulating a video recorded after the conclusion of the discussion on the 350th Shaheedi Diwas of Guru Teg Bahadur Ji.
Taking to X, former Delhi Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, Atishi, wrote, “The BJP harbours deep hostility towards the Sikh community and the Sikh Gurus, and even today it has committed a disgraceful act by insulting the Gurus. The BJP has deliberately misused the name of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji and insulted him. They tweeted a video in which two false claims were made in the name of Guru Sahib.”
Exposing the BJP’s falsehood, she stated, “The video is being projected as if it pertains to the discussion marking 350 years of the martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji. In reality, this video is from a later point, after that discussion had concluded and when the House had moved on to the debate on the Lieutenant Governor’s address.”
She further added, “In the video, I am clearly speaking about the BJP trying to evade a discussion on pollution and about their protest in the Assembly over the issue of stray dogs. I say, ‘Then you conduct the discussion. Why have you been running away since morning? You are saying, “respect dogs, respect dogs”. Hon’ble Speaker, please allow a discussion on this.’ However, the BJP maliciously added a false subtitle and dragged Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji’s name into it.”
Questioning the BJP’s intent, Atishi said, “What kind of hatred does the BJP have towards Sikhs that it is stooping to falsely invoke the name of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji for political purposes?”
The Delhi Assembly LoP further stated, “I come from a family where, for generations, the eldest son has embraced the Sikh faith to protect society. I can give my life, but I cannot tolerate any insult to Guru Sahib. Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji sacrificed his life to protect people of another faith. And the BJP is misusing his revered name for petty politics. They should be ashamed.”
Senior AAP leader and Punjab Prabhari Manish Sisodia wrote: “When the ‘Bharatiya Jhootha Party’ descends into lies, even shame does not stand in its way. The statement made by the LoP in the Delhi Assembly, Atishi, has been deliberately chopped, maliciously edited, and repackaged with poisonous intent to manufacture an entirely new lie. This is not a mistake. It is the product of a well-oiled fake news factory, created with premeditation.”
The AAP Punjab Prabhari stated, “The BJP fears the truth, which is why it cuts the camera. The BJP fears questions, which is why it suppresses voices. The BJP has no answers, which is why it spreads lies. Watch the video. The truth will speak for itself. And then decide for yourself: do you want debate in politics or bad faith? Do you want democracy, or edited lies?”
Senior AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh wrote: “The BJP is the most deceitful and disgraceful party in the history of India, rightly deserving the name ‘Bharatiya Jhootha Party’. A party that has repeatedly subjected the Sikh community to injustice has now crossed all limits by daring to insult the Sikh Gurus. The Sikh community will never forgive the BJP and its leaders for this despicable act. Those who fabricated and circulated a false video of Atishi will have to go to jail.”
Taking to X, AAP Delhi State President Saurabh Bharadwaj stated, “The BJP is facing daily embarrassment in Delhi as its Chief Minister and Ministers are getting exposed on every front. Their Chief Minister cannot even pronounce AQI. Their Minister cannot pronounce the names of their own departments.”
The AAP Delhi Unit Chief further wrote, “CM Rekha Gupta has recently been instructed to only ‘read from notes’ while interacting with the media or delivering speeches. Despite these new instructions, she went on to claim that Shaheed Bhagat Singh threw a bomb at a Congress government.”
“The recent controversy around Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji has been manufactured by deliberately manipulating the words of Leader of Opposition Atishi. This is nothing but a ploy to divert attention from what CM Rekha Gupta said about Shaheed Bhagat Singh,” the AAP Delhi unit chief stated.
In another post, Saurabh Bharadwaj stated: “BJP government has stooped so low that they are using the sacred name of Guru Saahab for their cheap Politics. Shame on BJP Govt for manipulating the video with a false and fabricated transcript. With her original video, LoP Atishi has exposed BJP’s lies.”
Meanwhile, senior AAP leader Gopal Rai said that the issue on which the BJP created a ruckus in the House on Wednesday is one on which the AAP has spoken inside the Assembly and continues to say even now that the BJP government should make its video public before the people of Delhi. “On Tuesday, the Chief Minister openly made a statement in the House denying Shaheed Bhagat Singh’s struggle for India’s freedom against the British and his sacrifice, by claiming that he threw a bomb against a Congress government. The AAP brought before the public the video evidence of the Chief Minister’s incorrect statement.”
Gopal Rai said that if there is anything objectionable in what Atishi said, then the BJP government should place the video of her statement in the public domain. “Once the video is made public, it will be clear who said what. The Aam Aadmi Party does not speak without facts. If the party is saying anything about the Chief Minister, it is doing so on the basis of facts. While the video of Atishi’s statement has not been produced, disruptions were still created in the House today, just as there was an uproar on Tuesday as well,” he added.