Ajmal Apologises For Calling Srimanta Sankardev ‘Sahab’

All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) chief Maulana Badruddin Ajmal on Tuesday plead for forgiveness to the people of Assam at a public gathering in Morigaon for addressing Mahapurush Srimanta Sankardev as 'Sahab' during a political rally held in Nagaon on Monday.

Ajmal said addressing the Gurujona was completely unintentional and considered it a slip of tongue.

There were video clips that showed the public shouting slogans of "Sankardev Zindabad" during the rally in Nagaon yesterday.

In this connection, the Batadrava Than Managing Committee has strongly condemned the incident.

The committee was quoted saying in a TNIE report, "Mahapurush Sankardev is in the hearts of the Assamese. His sacred birthplace is Batadrava Than. And at a political rally of Ajmal in the vicinity, they addressed the Gurujona as Sahab and shouted Sankardeva zindabad slogan," adding, "Where did they get this culture from? We are hurt as well as ashamed by their act. The Batadrava Than Managing Committee condemns them. We warn them not to make any comments on the Gurujona in the political arena".

The Bharatiya Janata Party also condemned the act. The party spokesperson Rupam Goswami addressed the media and said no Assamese would tolerate such an insult and claimed that certain factions of the illegal Muslim immigrants who came from East Bengal may have become Indians due to the Assam Accord cut-off 1971 but is yet to be real Assamese citizens.