BJP's Meenakshi Lekhi hits out at Microsoft's Satya Nadella over CAA
After Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella expressed his view over controversial Citizenship Amendment Act, BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi today deemed his comment as the ‘perfect example’ of how even the literate people need to be well informed about the government’s initiative.
"How (the) literate need to be educated! Perfect example. Precise reason for CAA is to grant opportunities to persecuted minorities from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan," she tweeted.
In the same tweet, the BJP MP also pondered upon why the United States, where Microsoft is located cannot give much the same opportunities to "Syrian Muslims instead of Yezidis".
The Yezidis, a monotheistic population with their roots in Iraq, Syria and Turkey, were vigorous picked out by ISIS. Thousands from the community fell victim to a genocide created by the terror organisation, compelling over 15% of its population to flee.
Satya Nadella had expressed his view over the Citizenship Amendment Act in an interview with BuzzFeed editor-in-chief Ben Smith at a Microsoft event on Monday. "I think it's just bad. If anything, I would love to see a Bangladeshi immigrant who comes to India and creates the next unicorn in India or becomes the CEO of Infosys, that should be the aspiration. If I had to sort of mirror what happened to me in the US, I hope that's what happens in India," he said.
A different statement tendered by Microsoft India quoted the CEO as saying that he was shaped by a combination of his Indian heritage, the time spent growing up in a multicultural India and later by his "immigrant experience" in the United States. "My hope is for an India where an immigrant can aspire to found a prosperous start-up or lead a multinational corporation benefitting Indian society and the economy at large," he said, but added that there was some good news to be drawn from the fact that people were at least debating the law in what was a "messy democracy".
The statement was praised by several on social media, including Ramachandra Guha.
Satya Nadella's statement comes in the middle of ongoing protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, which aims to accelerate citizenship for non-Muslim migrants from three adjacent countries. While critics says that the law discriminates on the basis of religion, those linked to the ruling BJP maintain that those protesting it are being misled by Left parties and the Congress.
Earlier, BJP’s Tejasvi Surya had stirred a controversy by claiming that only "illiterates and puncture-wallahs" were opposed to the CAA.
Also Read: UP: BJP MLA Radha Mohan Agarwal threatens to resign if any Indian Muslim evicted under CAA
