BSP candidate from UP Haji Yakub Qureshi who once announced reward for Charlie Hebdo journalists' killers loses
Meerut, May 25 (IBNS): Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Rajendra Agrawal registered a significant victory against the BSP candidate in Meerut Lok Sabha seat who had once announced cash reward for the terrorists who had killed journalists of French satirical weekly magazine Charlie Hebdo.
In a closely contested election on a seat, which has about 34 percent Muslim votes, Agarwal got 5,86,184 votes while his BSP opponent Haji Yakub Qureshi managed 5,81,455 votes.
Haji Yakub is known for making controversial remarks.
A Danish newspaper Jyllands Posten had once published a cartoon depicting Prophet Mohammad in 2005 and this act had triggered an outrage in the Muslim world.
Protests and even attacks on Western diplomatic missions and Christian symbols had taken place following the publication of the cartoon.
Amidst this, this same political leader and businessman from Meerut- Haji Yakub Qureshi- had announced a reward of Rs 51 crore for beheading the cartoonists who made those cartoons for the Danish paper, reported Swarajya.
As an act of journalistic solidarity several publications had later republished the cartoon. Among them one prominent publication was France's Charlie Hebdo.
However, on Jan 7, 2015, two armed men, identified as Cherif Kouachi and Said Kouachi, entered the office of the satirical magazine and killed 12 people, including eight journalists, leaving the world shocked.
They reportedly belonged to Al Qaeda.
The depiction of the Prophet by the French weekly was reportedly the reason behind the attack.
This time also, in India, Haji Yakub Qureshi had announced the reward of giving Rs. 51 crores to the killers of the magazine's journalists.
“The cartoonist who drew the cartoon in past has died but I am willing to reward the current killers of Charlie Hebdo journalists] with Rs 51 crore.” Swarajya quoted the defeated Mahagathbandhan candidate as saying.
The issue even caught the attention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
During an election campaigning in Meerut in 2019, PM had said: “I have been told that in Meerut, the leaders of opposition have even fielded candidates who have, in the past, announced crores for terrorists. These are all ‘maha-milawaati’ (adulterated) people, and can go to any level.”
Image Credit: YouTube/Wikimedia commons
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