BJP MP from Bhopal Pragya Singh Thakur on Sunday, 21 July kicked up a controversy saying she has not become a lawmaker to clean drains or toilets, a statement the Congress said has "exposed" the "hollowness" of the BJP's flagship 'Swachh Bharat' campaign.
Addressing a meeting of BJP workers in Madhya Pradesh, Thakur, an accused in the 2008 Malegaon bomb blast case, is currently out on bail, said she wasn’t there to clean toilets or drains.
“So keep this in mind... We are not here for cleaning a drain. Is it clear?. We are absolutely not (here) for cleaning your toilets. The work which we are supposed to do and elected for, we will do it honestly. This we had said in the past, saying it today and stick to it in future as well.”Pragya Thakur, MP, Bhopal
“MP Should Do Work Befitting a Parliamentarian”
The Hindutva leader further said an MP should be told to do work befitting a parliamentarian and that the job of an MP is to work with MLAs, corporators and public representatives to ensure development.
"An MP's work is to join hands with MLAs, corporators and public representatives for development," she added.
"You got (my) phone number easily and rang (me) up.." Thakur said while referring to a call she had received, apparently from a party worker, when she was in Delhi recently.
Thakur said she would give a "patient hearing" to the workers once the Parliamentary sessions gets over.
“Whatever the problem is it will be resolved. The funds we get (as an MP) will be used for public good.”Pragya Thakur, BJP MP, Bhopal
JP Nadda Pulls up Pragya
BJP working president J P Nadda on Monday pulled up Thakur for her remarks and comments that were seen to be mocking Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Swachh Bharat' campaign.
She was summoned to the BJP headquarters, where Nadda conveyed to her the party leadership's displeasure with her comments made at Sehore in Madhya Pradesh on Sunday, party sources said, PTI reported.
Thakur was pulled up and asked to refrain from making statements that go against the party’s programmes and ideology, they said.
The BJP MP declined to speak to reporters as she left the party office.
How Will She Create New India: Owaisi
The ruling Congress in Madhya Pradesh has criticised Thakur's statement.
"Thakur's statement speaks about the BJP and the so-called concern its MPs have had towards the problems faced by people," state Congress spokesperson Shobha Oza said.
She said Thakur's statement has "exposed" the "hollowness" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's flagship 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyan'.
IMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi also took a jibe at Pragya saying that she was directly challenging what PM Modi's works for, India Today reported.
Reacting to the Bhopal BJP legislator's remark, Owaisi said, "She is challenging what Prime Minister Modi is trying to preach and is saying that since she hails from an upper caste, those who clean toilets are not her equals."
"How will you create a new India like this," Owaisi questioned of Pragya, speaking to India Today.
Habituated to Controversies
Thakur is not new to controversies. In the run-to her Lok Sabha elections, she had termed Mahatma Gandhi's assassin Nathuram Godse a "patriot".
She had also claimed that the then Maharashtra ATS chief Hemant Karkare was killed in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks due to her "curse".
Her statement on Godse had evoked strong rebuke from Prime Minister Narendra Modi who had said that he would never forgive her for insulting the Father of the Nation.
(With inputs from India Today and PTI)
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