Patil links Afzal to Sarabjit; BJP says ‘nonsense’

As his quote started creating ripples in the media today, Patil issued a statement saying he had been misinterpreted.” He, however, did not specify what the correct interpretation was.

Speaking in Marathi to reporters in his hometown of Latur today, he said: “Afzal Guru.. Lokana fashi deu naka mhanun sangtay aani Hindustanchya lokana fashi dya mhanun sangtay. Asa kaay karayla laglat? Tya lokana fashi deu naka tumhi mhanayala laglat aani ithe fashi dya mhanayala laglat. (Afzal Guru…You are asking for the death sentence to be waived for people and you are demanding that people from Hindustan should be hanged. What are you doing? You are starting to say that those people should not be hanged and here, you are demanding a hanging).

Guru was found guilty in the December 13, 2001 attack on Parliament in which seven security personnel were killed. His death sentence was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2004. His execution, however, is on hold with the Government yet to revert to Rashtrapati Bhavan on a clemency petition.

Sarabjit Singh faces a death sentence in Pakistan on charges of carrying out bomb blasts. India has requested Pakistan to grant clemency to him on humanitarian grounds. Pakistan is yet to take a final decision on his clemency but has repeatedly put off the date of his execution.

The Opposition quickly latched on to Patil’s remarks, with the BJP describing it as “one of the most irresponsible comments by a minister”. Senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said the Home Minister’s statements were “bound to have serious implications for the ongoing talks with Pakistan”. BJP spokesperson Prakash Javdekar described the remarks as “condemnable” and “deplorable,” and said this was another instance of government playing vote bank politics.

Meanwhile, in an interview to CNN-IBN, Patil brushed aside criticism that he was soft on terror. “Just because I don’t shout or enter into a ‘tu tu main main’ with others doesn’t mean I am soft. I am doing my duty with commitment, that is all that matters.”

He rejected demands by the Opposition for bringing back a law like POTA to deal with terrorism. “Are we saying that terrorism will end when POTA is brought back? Was there no terrorism when the Opposition was in power at the Centre and POTA was a law?” he asked. “If you are fighting a tiger in a jungle, it is not enough to simply have a license in your hand. You need more than just law to fight terrorism. You need to improve the entire police machinery and modernize it. The present law of the land is tough enough without lending itself to human rights violations, as was the case in POTA.”