Owaisi calls Trump 'jahil' for Narendra Modi father of India statement

AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi on Wednesday hit out at Donald Trump for hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the father of India, alleging the US president lacked knowledge about the country's great past and Mahatma Gandhi, the father of the nation.

Even late Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, giants of Indian politics, were not called the father of the nation, he told reporters here replying to questions on Modi's visit to US and Trump sharing the stage with him at Houston.

"...the US president Mr Trump has called Mr Modi, father of the nation. He is 'jahil' (illiterate). He is ignorant. He does not know anything about Mahatma Gandhi. He has zero knowledge about India's great past, our freedom struggle, and when he calls him (Modi) father of nation," he charged.

Modi and Mahatma Gandhi cannot be compared, he said adding the latter earned the Father of the Nation title.

He, however, said he agreed with Trump on his comparison of Modi with Elvis Presley.

"Elvis Presley used to mesmerise people with his songs.

Mr Modi also does that when he gives 'bhashan' (speech)...

But, I don't want to demean my Prime Minister by saying he is like Elvis Presley," Owaisi said.

Trump had on Tuesday heaped praise on Modi, saying "I remember India before was very torn. There was a lot of dissension, fighting and he brought it all together. Like a father would. Maybe he is the father of India."

Owais said Trump was praising Modi and also Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan.

Trump has told Khan to speak to the Iranian leadership and tells India not to buy oil from Iran, which has put a huge financial burden on the people of the country, he claimed.

Hitting back at Union Minister Jitendra Singh for his comments that those not proud of Trump calling Modi "India's father" don't consider themselves Indians, Owaisi he had demeaned freedom fighters who worked under Mahatma Gandhi.

"Mr Jitendra Singh places more value on a foreigner, on a white man, and we fought this freedom struggle to get rid of all these white men... Who are you sir, who the hell are you to question my love for India," Owaisi said.

He expressed hope Modi would come out with a statement that the father of the nation continued to be Gandhi.

Referring to Army chief Bipin Rawat's remarks that Pakistan has reactivated the Balakot terror camp very recently and about 500 infiltrators were waiting to sneak into India, the Hyderabad MP said the government had stated demonetisation and surgical strike in Balakot would "finish terrorism".

"How is it that the Pakistanis have used drones and dropped arms in Punjab. It is for the government to say. Our own Chief of Army Staff is saying this," he said.
He urged Home Minister Amit Shah to lift "restrictions" on communication in Jammu and Kashmir for "at least 48 hours" in the wake of the earthquake that hit Pakistan Occupied Kashmir and several north-eastern cities in Pakistan so that people can know the whereabouts of their near ones.

He dismissed as grandiose announcement Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's offer of Rs 6,000 per annum to the victims of triple talaq and questioned how it will help them.

"Why isn't the Chief Minister ensuring justice to that law student who came out and said that she was continuously raped, molested...," he said, referring to the former union minister Swami Chinmayanand, arrested in connection with the case and disowned by BJP.

--PTI--